Action 13: Widow gets help from Harris Co. Appraisal District after husband missed hearing while he was in coma

“When that storm got here by way of, I used to be scared,” Amanda recalled Wednesday throughout an interview with ABC13’s Adam Winkler. “I used to be on my own. He was our protector.”

Amanda is now a widow.

Her husband Blake handed away a month in the past. He was 39 years outdated. The kids he leaves behind are seven and 5.

“I am heartbroken. He was my husband and my greatest pal, and our kids are so younger,” Amanda stated. “We’re making an attempt to get organized. My husband took care of loads.”

Amongst his duties: dealing with property worth disputes for the household’s dwelling within the Lakeside Forest subdivision close to Memorial.

Amanda stated Blake missed a scheduled appraisal assessment board listening to as a result of he was on a ventilator in a medically-induced coma.

With out a listening to, the house’s worth elevated $250,000, which places her and her children vulnerable to dropping their home.

“Our neighbors have turn into prolonged household to us,” Amanda identified. “So us dropping our home or our group on high of that may be devastating.”

Amanda confirmed ABC13 the correspondence she despatched to the Harris County Appraisal Evaluate Board requesting the listening to be rescheduled.

A request she discovered by way of a letter dated Sep. 8 was not granted.

“I perceive there are insurance policies and guidelines in place, however I feel we’re all nonetheless human,” Amanda stated. “If somebody bodily cannot attend a gathering as a result of they’re so sick that they are hospitalized within the ICU, I feel exceptions ought to be made.”

On this case, exceptions will likely be made.

Motion 13 took Amanda’s challenge to the Harris County Appraisal District.

Chief Communications Officer Jack Barnett stated the taxpayer liaison officer, who was unaware of the state of affairs till Wednesday morning, will work with Amanda to schedule a brand new listening to, if it is even wanted.

“We actually do not need to trigger any extra issues for her contemplating what she’s already been by way of,” Barnett instructed ABC13. “We try to resolve any points beforehand by having one among our senior residential appraisers take a look at the account to see if something might be resolved in order that they do not even need to get to that re-hearing.”

It is a welcoming decision for a household making an attempt to choose up the items and climate the storm.

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