It was a month before Christmas when the Fairfield Auto Groups’ Rick Quigley-driven red Chevy Tahoe made its way up Poco Farm Road. But for its passengers, the Boos (pronounced Bose) family of Loyalsock Township, it might just as well have been Santa’s red sleigh on Christmas morning.

The event was the culmination of iHeart Media’s annual Extreme Kitchen Makeover radio promotion and the awaiting transformation of their Pine Summit Road home was more than they could have imagined. It had been ten days since the Boos had been notified they were the winners of this year’s KISS-FM’s Gary Chrisman Morning Show annual contest, during which time they had been tucked away as guests of the Genetti Hotel & Suites.

“Since we found out we were the winners, the anticipation of what they could possibly be doing had filled my mind. When I walked in and saw what had been done, it blew me away. I never could have dreamed the makeover would be this extensive and beautiful,” a thrilled Lori Boos admitted.

“I was expecting a makeover of the kitchen, but all the extra things they did with the pantry, the steps, the stonework, the wood stove area, they moved the bathroom and even put in a shower for my dogs that may be nicer than my shower upstairs. It is so much more than I could have imagined. I just love everything. I’ve never won anything before. This is all just perfect.”

The promotion began in the early 2000s when the idea was pitched to Joe Livorno, from JP Stone Granite & Marble. Livorno loved the idea and came aboard as the original sponsor of the Extreme Kitchen Makeover event. Although several changes have been made since then, now in its 13th year, the popular Chrisman Morning Show radio promotion is still going strong.

There have been a few years when the promotion did not occur, but Chrisman remained adamant regarding the event’s popularity.

“It’s too good of an event not to do,” Chrisman stressed. “This now marks our fifth consecutive year of doing it again. When we brought it back, John Albrano Construction was our lead sponsor for two years and for the past three years Maurice Bower, of TurnKey Construction, has been the lead sponsor and really has taken the event to new highs as it relates to what has been done at the homes of the various winners.

“We wanted to do something special for these families. This is something that maybe they could never do, or afford to do, of this caliber. What begins as a kitchen makeover often turns into much more than that, with a whole lot of other perks added because of the interest, workmanship and the desire to do something really special by all the various sponsors participating.”

“We love giving back to the community,” explained TurnKey’s Maurice Bower. “We have been very fortunate with our company, and I was very happy to get involved with this project. We’ve been doing this for a few years, and we are going to stick with it and pass it on with my son when he takes over. There is a lot of work involved but when you see the surprise and happiness on the faces of the family when they see what has been done, it is well worth it.”

On the morning the Boos family was notified as the contest winner, and before the remodeling work began, Williamsport Moving & Storage began the task of removing household items from the home and storing them until the work was completed.

A work crew consisting of 30, 12 of whom were TurnKey employees, spent ten days transforming the Boos home. Workdays often stretched from 7:00 a.m. till midnight to ensure an on-time completion of the project. Their efforts were supported with products and services provided by Elery Nau Hardware, Bob’s Disposal, Pudgies Pizza, Chef Hosch & Ann’s Catering; Susquehanna Unlimited Services; Beiter’s and Bud Light.

While TurnKey Construction played the lead role as the general contractor in producing the kitchen magic, a host of local businesses played important roles in the process. Cabinetry was provided by Lezzer Lumber and Design Center; granite countertops by Susquehanna Marble & Granite; plumbing and heating courtesy of R. J. Ertel; electrical work by Hammond Electric; Howell Dry Wall & Painting spruced up the interior; appliances were provided by Bill’s Appliance Center; flooring by New Life Wood Floors; Woodrich American made furniture; decorative accessories from Alechia’s; and interior design created by Seidel Shiffer of Timeless Furniture and Interiors.

“While the COVID crisis caused some concerns, there was even more reason to do this again this year,” added Chrisman. “With so many people out of work and finances being a concern, this made the event even bigger to help people out. Everyone was thinking in a positive direction. You have to get back to work and open the economy and for our sponsors this is a way to give back to folks who are experiencing a tough year.

“The response from listeners was huge. We had over 2,000 entries that were eventually narrowed down to about 200. From there we were able to determine five finalists. Two were from Williamsport, one from Jersey Shore, one from Muncy and the eventual winner, the Boos family from rural Loyalsock Township. At that point a committee met with each of the five families to determine what was going to be needed to be done and five sets of plans were made up so we would be ready to begin work once the winner was determined.

“KISS/FM has always done big promotions. I think people know we are going to do something first class and do it well. You can do major market radio promotions in a small town. You have to think big and if you do you can find a lot of other sponsors that will think big with you. Personally, I think this is one of the greatest radio promotions ever done in the history of this radio market. If people had to pay for the value of the kitchen makeover, it would cost them a lot of money.”

Echoing his wife’s excitement, Rob Boos took in the improvements with amazement.

“This is absolutely beautiful. After I got over the initial wow factor and realized how much work went into this, it is amazing to see the attention to detail that is involved. This is an older house and we had done some renovations since we moved in (2006) but the amount of man hours and work that went into this in a ten-day period, it’s hard to imagine how they pulled this off in that time frame.”

“I’ve now witnessed this many times, but it is always exciting to see the look in the winner’s eyes when they find out they won,” Chrisman confessed. “But it is just like a TV show when you take them back to the house when the work has been completed. The look on their faces is priceless when they walk into their house and they don’t recognize what they are about to see, they are totally blown away by this brand-new look. It is always fun for me. I love this stuff.”

It goes without saying, so do the Boos!