'Extreme Makeover' Seeks Military Families

By Elaine Sanchez
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28, 2011 - The cast of ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" would like to brighten the holidays for a deserving military family this year.

The reality show is seeking nominations for military families in desperate need of a home makeover. The selected family will be featured in an upcoming holiday episode.

"We want to do a holiday-themed episode that's even bigger and more extreme than ever," David Shumsky, the show's casting director, said in an ABC news release. "In order to pull off such a huge venture, we need the support of the entire community. We know that the military communities will come out to help one of their own."

The popular reality show features Ty Pennington, his design team and a host of volunteers performing a massive home makeover in just seven days. The show focuses on families whose home situation is a severe hindrance to their quality of life, Shumsky explained.

"We really want to help families whose homes present major problems for the family -- those big issues that affect the family's quality of life on a daily basis," he said. "We want to find deserving people who just don't have the resources, ability or time to fix those serious issues without our help.

"For this special episode we'd love it if the holiday season had some special significance to the family's story," he added. "Maybe they have unique holiday traditions or volunteer in an organization specifically geared toward the season. Ultimately, we want to give this family the best holiday they've ever had."

Families in need of a home makeover or community members who know of a deserving family are welcome to submit nominations. Nominations must include the names and ages of every household member, a description of the major challenges within the home, a short description of the family story, and a contact phone number.

People should also explain why the family is deserving, heroic or a great role model in their community and, if possible, include recent photos of the family and home. People can submit nominations via email to jax@emhe.tv.

For more information on how to apply, visit the show's website at
http://abc.go.com/primetime/xtremehome/index?pn=apply.
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