Woman gifted water heater, furnace after newly-purchased home in Detroit was robbed on day of closing

Woman gifted new appliances after old ones stolen

The tears coming down Keyana Hunter's face were that of happiness. After all, a new water heater and furnace alleviates much of the burden she's been dealing with the past few weeks. But it was the community response that prompted her joy following a theft at her newly-purchased home. Hunter had just closed on the Detroit property when she was robbed of the appliances that regulate temperature and water going into the home.

(FOX 2) - The tears coming down Keyana Hunter's face were that of happiness. After all, a new water heater and furnace alleviates much of the burden she's been dealing with the past few weeks.

But it was the community response that prompted her joy following a theft at her newly-purchased home. Hunter had just closed on the Detroit property when she was robbed of the appliances that regulate temperature and water going into the home.

With two expensive pieces of hardware stripped from her home, the incident left her heartbroken and without words. A single mother of two, she was up against the typical burdens of a new home with no end in sight for the added costs.

"I was lost, I was so lost I honestly thought I was going to have to give it up and try to figure out something else," she said, her cheeks wet from tears.

Hunter told her story in mid-July. She had just signed the paperwork for a new home when she discovered the nightmare. The lockbox had been removed from her home. A little more investigation revealed thieves had removed both the furnace and water heater from the basement.

A phone call to her insurance company didn't make things better. And after reaching out to the title company of the seller, she was given the same answer: "There's nothing that they could do" she was told.

The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs also offered little help. After her story went live on July 14, her gofundme grew. As did the number of people reaching out. Among those was Kenneth MacIver of Kona Air Heating and Cooling.

"My wife saw the story and it feels good to help somebody out," he said.

"It was the community that helped raise the money for the equipment. We put in the free labor," said MacIver. "Carr Supply helped us get some cost off on the equipment. She had a family member supply the tankless water heater so our equipment cost came to around $4,000. We were pretty much right where the goFundme hit."

And not only that, MacIver was able to throw in A/C - an upgrade to the home that raised the total fix to a $10,000 job. But for Hunter, it was a show of goodwill.

"I hope more people see a company do something for somebody to help them and pick up on that same idea - help people," said MacIver.