ELM VALLEY — It’s over and the best of the best made it happen.

It started in January when Melissa Fuller realized that her elderly neighbor, Paul Glover, was in trouble. His house on Route 417 between Wellsville and Andover was falling down around him. He had no water and his home was no longer safe to live in. Fuller knew she had to do something.

“I knew when we started that it would be a lot of work, but I believed the community would help,” she said.

And help they did. Earlier this month, Glover moved into his new tiny home on the land where his house and farm market once stood.

“He’s warm and dry and safe. My biggest concern now is that he is going to need a shed,” Fuller said while looking out the window across the road to where Glover was mowing his lawn with a new lawn mower.

This photo shows the kitchen area of the tiny home put in place for Paul Glover.

Fuller expressed thanks to all who helped, from Elmira to Buffalo and especially from the communities of Olean, Hornell, Alfred, Wellsville, Whitesville and Andover.

“There are so many people and businesses that helped that I can’t begin to list them all,” she said. “If I leave anyone out, I apologize.”

Two of the biggest helps, she said, came from the Wellsville Bible Church where Glen Smith handled the monetary end of the effort by managing the GoFundMe page as well as the monetary donations. The other big help was from the Andover code enforcement officer, who helped Fuller with the building permit and certificate of occupation.

In total the effort to get a new home for Glover raised $35,000 to $36,000. Donations are still coming in and some bills are yet to be paid. Fuller notes that many of the bills for the home furnishing, installation of new infrastructure and landscaping never came due.

“When I’d ask about paying their bills, many of the contractors and businesses just made it a donation,” she said.

Again apologizing for possibly leaving anyone or any business overlooked, Fuller said, “It’s hard to keep track of everyone and for the many donations that just showed up on my porch.”

Some of the donations came from LC Whitford, Andover Fire Department, Sandy’s Place, Wayne Paving, Root Water Wells, Shay’s Plumbing, Alfred State students, Graham Septic, Ghoulds of Buffalo, Southern Tier Habitat for Humanity, Tinkertown Hardware, Andover Hardware, Fassett Lane, Cross Country, Eastwind Nursery, Certified Traffic Controllers, Southern Tier Express, Pepsi Company, Auntie EMS, Mattress City, Allegany County Department of Social Services, the Elks Club, Lions Club, Veterans of Foreign Wars and an anonymous veteran from Hornell, along with help from Chris Hall, Harry Stevens, Chris Elliott, Fred Thompkins, Cody Saxton, Dawson Snyder, Austin Wagner, Greg Schieble and Larry Fields.

“The people who helped are the best of the best,” she said. “The contractors were reliable and so many helped out from the different communities. It’s over. I’m breathing deeply again and we’re going to enjoy the summer.”

She also noted that when she started the fundraising effort in January, she set an end date of June 1. Glover moved into his new home on June 7 and is living happily ever after.