Austin police team up to fix safe house

Austin Police officers rolled up their sleeves in an effort to fix up a safe house for children Sunday.

Officers joined a group called "SCARE for the Cure" - which normally builds and runs an extreme haunted house.

Volunteers put their skills to work to repair the Comfort House - a home in southeast Austin that's a safe place for disadvantaged children.

Florence Ponziano opened her home to kids and their families nearly 20 years ago.  The home gets a lot of use, plus it needs a lot of repairs.

The volunteers stepped up when they heard about the need.

"...I thought you know, they need some repairing, some painting, some fixing up things, and I thought, we can do this. SCARE for the cure, we need to get out in the community more. We don't have to be just a Halloween event," said Detective Jarrett Crippen.

"It's a total blessing, because I would never get all these things done by myself. He's an angel. I feel truly blessed," said Florence Ponziano/Comfort House homeowner.

Volunteers did cleaning and yard work, along with more involved carpentry and electrical work.