From
Maui TV News
for the week of August 13, 2009

A South Maui man is enduring amazing medical challenges in his life. But - after returning home to Maui from extensive treatment in Houston for a month, Mike Marzke found out who his friends really are...

...and how many there are!

The full transcript to this amazing story follows below.

(TAKE MARZKE PKG) FROM HERE THIS LOOKS LIKE AN ORDINARY FAMILY HOME - THAT OBVIOUSLY HAS KIDS - AND FRIENDS. BUT FROM THIS POINT ON, THERE'S NOTHING ORDINARY ABOUT THIS STORY. WHAT YOU'RE SEEING ARE THE FINISHING TOUCHES OF A COMMUNITY-SUPPLIED, FRIEND-CONCEIVED HOME MAKEOVER, INSIDE AND OUT. MIKE AND LAURA MARZKE HAVE LIVED HERE FOR SEVEN YEARS. THEY'VE BEEN MARRIED FOR EIGHT. BUT A FEW MONTHS AGO, THEIR ENTIRE LIFE TURNED AROUND.

Laura Marzke, wife

LM02: "In April we found out that he had a very rare, rare cancer in a very unusual place. We went to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, to confirm the Maui pathology. Then we went back in July and Mikie had a major surgery done. I can tell you that it was his urethra that runs through the prostate, the prostate itself and his bladder. He had 38 lymph nodes pulled - and only one of them was cancerous. Then he had part of his small intestine removed and reconstructed into an internal, new bladder."

LAURA'S OLD COLLEGE ROOMMATE, ROBIN PILUS, HAD AN IDEA THAT MIGHT HELP MIKE AND LAURA SETTLE INTO A NEW ROUTINE BECAUSE THE OLD ONE WAS ABOUT TO CHANGE.

Robin Pilus, Best Friend

RP01: "Because I've known Laura for so long - and I know how to work her - I said, well, Laura, I have an idea. It might not be a good idea but I have an idea. I knew she would need to embrace it to make it happen. I said, would you consider having a few friends come in a paint your house. Because she's got all this beautiful artwork that she and Mikie had before they moved over here to Kulipu'u seven years ago - and they've never put it up because they have little kids and they didn't want it to get wrecked. I said, wouldn't it be cool if Mikie came in and saw all of his artwork on the walls and everything had a fresh coat of paint and everything really looked beautiful."

LAURA SAID SHE NEEDED TO THINK ABOUT IT AND SHE DID - FOR ABOUT EIGHT SECONDS - THEN TOLD HER FRIEND ANNIE GOMES ABOUT IT.

RP02: "And within about eight hours, Annie had all the paint donated, and she had talked with Patrick who agreed to do the whole thing. Then we sent out an emial - and that was on Tuesday. This is Saturday. Mikie comes home today at 4 o'clock - and it's just been a miracle."

"PATRICK" IS PATRICK YOUNG, A PROFESSIONAL MAUI PAINTER. YOUNG'S NEIGHBOR, ANNIE GOMES, ASKED IF HE MIGHT BE INCLINED TO DONATE A LITTLE PAINT AND A MAYBE A LITTLE LABOR TO HELP SPRUCE UP THE MARZKE HOME AS A SURPRISE BEFORE MIKE GETS HOME. HE WOUND UP DOING A LITTLE MORE THAN THAT.

Patrick Young, Owner, Patrick Young Painting

PY01: ...a little bit (LIKE WHAT)...Uh, the interior of the whole house."

BETWEEN TUESDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY, IT WAS LIKE A SPED-UP VERSION OF EXTREME MAKEOVER HOME EDITION. THE ENTIRE HOUSE WAS TAPED OFF, AND PRIMED, THEN PAINTED. THE OUTSIDE WAS POWER-WASHED. STELLA BLUES AND SHAKA PIZZA DONATED FOOD AND THE COMMUNITY JUST KEPT WORKING UNTIL THE JOB WAS DONE. SHERWIN WILLIAMS DONATED THE PAINT - AND THE TOTAL JOB WAS WORTH MORE THAN 85-HUNDRED DOLLARS.

BY NOON SATURDAY, IT WAS DOWN TO THE FINISHING TOUCHES - AND THE CLEANUP. BUT WITH MIKE DUE HOME IN LESS THAN FOUR HOURS, WOULD THEY MAKE IT? WITH FRIENDS AND CO-WORKERS FROM BLUE HAWAIIAN HELICOPTERS WHERE MIKE IS A MECHANIC. NEIGHBORS AND STRANGERS - BRINGING THEIR TIME, THEIR MUSCLE, FOOD AND THEIR ALOHA, YOU BET THEY'LL MAKE IT.

LM01: "Humbling, blessed and amazed at the amount of people who came out to help this project happen. It was an idea last Sunday and it morphed into all of these volunteers, and two of my very good crazy friends, Annie Gomes and Robin Pilus, putting together what you see here today."

Annie Gomes, Best Friend

AG01: "There was a whole community effort and I was just running the 'child camp' which was fun. I got to eat macaroni and cheese and watch the Disney Channel. I definitely got off with the easy end. I got some sleep, while I don't think a lot of people here did."

FAST FORWARD TO 3-45 AND JUST LOOK. THE PICTURES ARE UP, THE BED IS MADE, AND ARTWORK BY DAUGHTER MARY AND SON MIKE JUNIOR ADORN THE FRONT OF THE HOUSE. THAN, AS FAMILY, FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS AND STRANGERS GATHER - HERE'S COMES THE TRUCK - AND, IN EXTREME HOME MAKEOVER FASHION, A CHANT ARISES

(MOVE THAT VAN! MOVE THAT VAN)

AND JUST LIKE ON TV, THE VAN IS MOVED AND MIKE IS WELCOME TO HIS SPARKING HOME. AFTER A FEW HUGS FROM EVERYONE, MIKE GOT THE CHANCE TO TOUR IS COMPLETELY REPAINTED AND DECORATED HOME - TAKING IN SIGHTS HE HADN'T SEEN IN YEARS. WHEN HE GOT THE CHANCE TO SLOW DOWN FOR A MOMENT, MIKE TOLD US, AS YOU MIGHT GUESS, THAT THIS WAS A LITTLE OVERWHELMING.

Mike Marzke, Very Grateful

MM01: "Totally overwhelming. I had no expectation of this. I just planned on coming home and resting. This is...this is unreal. This is unreal. My wife worked so hard - all my friends. I just can't believe it."

AS EVERYONE GOT SET TO HEAD HOME AND LEAVE MIKE, LAURA AND THE KIDS TO GET THAT MUCH-NEEDED REST, THERE WERE HUGS AND TEARS AND A CHANCE TO PONDER WHAT WAS TAKING PLACE TODAY.

LM03: "I'm very - very grateful for what's happening today. I think just taking care of each other - as neighbors - and as a community is more important right now than ever."///

PY02: "The best part of it is that people are hurting so much here on Maui that I think we've lost track of helping people, you know, and when people come together like this to help somebody - because we're grateful for what we have and for where we live - it brings people together and we all start looking at life in a different way. And that's the big message."

AG02:" It really is a coming of so many people and it's not just this family - it's a sign of the times that so many people that need a hand. Reach out if you have a talent, if you have a gift. Use it. Share it. Because, like the Marzke family will vouch for, just a little effort - a little aloha is going to change your life."

JUST LIKE ON TV, ONLY ONE THING LEFT TO SAY...WELCOME HOME MARZKE FAMILY. WELCOME HOME.

(ON-CAM TAG) HOALOHA, KOKUA AND LAULIMA...THAT'S ABOUT AS CLOSE AS MOST OF US WILL EVER COME TO SEEING THE TRUE SPIRIT OF ALOHA.

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