Bill Patterson painted "Can you help rebuild our home" and his Venmo to get help

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SENECA WITH THE STORY. >> LAST MONDAY, THE PATTERSON FAMILY LOST EVERYTHING AND NOW HUSBAND AND FATHER BILL PATTERSON IS GETTING CREATIVE AND ASKING FOR HELP WITH SIX WORDS AND A CAN OF WHITE SPRAY PAINT. >> THIS WAS THE ENTRANCE TO OUR HOUSE. >> THE HOUSE BILL PATTERSON HAS SPENT MOST OF HIS LIFE IN IS NOW UNRECOGNIZABLE. THIS BEFORE AND AFTER SHOWS JUST HOW MUCH DAMAGE THE APRIL 13 TORNADO LEFT BEHIND. >> THE DINING ROOM AREA WAS HERE, FIREPLACE COMPLETELY GONE. >> POWERFUL WINDS KNOCKED HIS HOME ALMOST 15 FEET OFF ITS FOUNDATION. >> THIS IS A CLOSET THEY WERE IN. >> PATTERSON AND HIS WIFE AND HIS AUTISTIC SON HID IN THIS CLOSET AS THEIR ROOF COLLAPSED AND THEIR WALLS CAVED. THE FAMILY IS OK BUT THE HOUSE IS A TOTAL LOSS. >> MAYBE FEEL SORRY FOR YOURSELF JUST FOR A MOMENT BUT YOU HAVE TO PICK YOURSELF UP. THAT IS NO WAY TO LIVE. >> THEY DO NOT HAVE THE INSURANCE TO COVER ANY OF THIS. FOR THE PATTERSON FAMILY, THERE IS NO RESCUE SQUAD. THERE’S NO MAN IN A RED CAPE. SO AS A LAST RESORT AND WITH SOME CREATIVITY, A PUBLIC PLEA FOR HELP FOR ANYONE LOOKING OR LISTENING. >> I GOT UP ON THE ROOF AND WROTE MY VENMO UP THERE. MAYBE THIS WILL DRAW SOME ATTENTION TO WHAT WE’RE TRYING TO DO. >> IN WHITE SPRAY PAINT, AN OPEN INVITATION TO ALL TO GIVE TO A FAMILY IN NEED. >> EVERYTHING I AM DOING REVOLVES AROUND MY WIFE AND KIDS. DOING EVERYTHING I CAN TO REBUILD FOR THEM AND REACH OUT FOR HELP. >> SO FAR, BILL SAYS MANY PEOPLE HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE PATTERSON FAMILY VIA VENMO AND HOPES STORIES LIKE THESE WILL BRING ATTENTION TO ALL OF THE FAMILIES AFFECTED BY LAST WEEK’S TORNADO. THE ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM IN SENECA IS NOW BACK ONLINE, ONE STEP CLOSER TO A SENSE OF NORMALCY FOR EVERYONE HERE.

Advertisement Seneca man spray paints Venmo account on roof of tornado destroyed home Bill Patterson painted "Can you help rebuild our home" and his Venmo to get help Share Shares Copy Link Copy

An Upstate man spray-painted the words "Can you help rebuild our home" along with his Venmo account "@Bill-Patterson-71" on the top of his tornado-destroyed home in a desperate attempt to get help.Husband and father Bill Patterson told WYFF News 4 that his family does not have insurance to cover the damages done by the April 13 tornado, and that all of the finances to rebuild will have to come out-of-pocket. Patterson hopes the public invitation will provoke people to donate and assist him, his wife, his daughter and his autistic son who lost everything to the tornado, as well as bring attention to all of those adversely affected."Maybe this will draw some attention to what we’re trying to do," Patterson said. "I thought it was interesting and so I got up on the roof and wrote my Venmo up there and we've had a number of people contributing and certainly we appreciate it. I can't express how grateful we are."Patterson, his wife, and his son rushed to hide in the closet of their one-story home as soon as they began hearing tornado sirens in the early morning hours after Easter Sunday. The powerful winds knocked the house 15 feet off its foundation, collapsed the roof, caved in the front door and blew the chimney out. The house is now slanted on its base and experts said it is not repairable. It will have to be torn down completely and rebuilt. Patterson is hoping that his Venmo request, visible for hundreds of yards all around, will provide an added boost. "Everything I'm doing revolves around my wife and my kids," said Patterson. "I'm doing everything I can to rebuild for them and reach out for help."The Patterson's are currently staying with a family friend.