Disabled widow given new heating system
This year, few residents of the Highlands will appreciate the warmth of the holidays — and her home — more than Vicki Calder.
Two days before Christmas, technicians from T.Webber Plumbing, Heating, Air & Electric installed a new heating system for the Cold Spring resident free of charge.
The gift, made in partnership with RAL Supply, was part of a program called Heat for the Holidays that Tommy Webber, president of the 30-year-old Philipstown firm, says he plans to make an annual tradition.
For years, Calder was employed by the New York City Board of Education, working with drug-addicted teenagers. Now a widow, and disabled with serious back problems, she lives on a fixed income. Calder said the furnace will allow her to focus on healing.
“I can’t believe it; this is such a gift,” she said. “It’s a Christmas miracle.”
Calder’s aging boiler began malfunctioning last spring. Friends reported that at times, she went without heat. T.Webber solicited nominations for the Heat for the Holidays giveaway, and a friend sent in her name and details.
Chris Piacente headed the three-man crew that removed Calder’s 35-year-old steel boiler, replacing it with a modern, oil-fired cast-iron model. The new system, including installation, retails for about $10,000, he said.
“Family and community have always been important to our company culture,” Webber said. “Our hope is this will be as much of a blessing to our neighbors as they’ve been to us throughout the years.”