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The couple, both chemists and natives of China but now American citizens, had lived in Atlanta after going to school in England, where they were married and Anna was born. A job change brought the family full-time care Anna needed when at home.

By Duane St. Clair

pHOTOGrApHy By CHriSTA SMOTHErS continued

from page 27

Kelly managed to care for Anna, now a junior at Dublin Jerome High School, in the Muirfield home by using a first-floor den as her bedroom, avoiding the difficult task of negotiating stairs. The room had no bathroom, though, and Anna had to be moved to the one in her parents’ room. Lifting her daughter in and out of the chair or tub was a daunting task for Kelly.

With those challenges in mind, Kelly took the lead in efforts to build a new, handier home. Through a reference, she contacted Truberry Group and outlined her wishes, and the project design got underway for their new home in Tartan Fields.

– along with new son Austin, now 7 – to central Ohio in 2006, whereupon they moved to a home in Muirfield Village. Since the family moved to Dublin, the Jiangs have added Luke, 4, to the family. Kelly left her career in the restaurant business and decided to stay at home with her children, owing in part to the

The company became state-certified to build homes for the developmentally disabled. The Delaware County Board of Developmental Disabilities helped secure Medicaid reimbursement for the part of the home that would be Anna’s –essentially a small, one-room apartment with its own bathroom, a small nearby kitchen, a padded exercise bench and a ceiling-mounted lift that can carry Anna from her bed to the

ANNA’S SUITE

First Floor

bathroom and back without needing to be lifted by an aid.

As Truberry planners worked with Kelly to design the room, other conveniences came into play. The room has access to the laundry room, with a range and other appliances on one side and a door leading to a wheelchair ramp to the driveway that’s tucked neatly against the home, just behind the three-car garage. A camera mounted outside connects to a video screen in the bedroom to watch for the school bus during cold weather, Kelly says – necessary because the landing at the top of the ramp is not sheltered.

Another door leads to the deck, and a ramp from it allows Anna to be wheeled into the tree-lined rear yard.

Anna’s room is connected to the great room through a door that can be locked in the event Anna’s area becomes her private apartment that she can enjoy with the help of a hired caregiver. She doesn’t have one now, but that may happen eventually so the family has the option of being away from home, Kelly says.

To further create a separate living area, a stairway was built between the garage and the basement, where a bedroom and bathroom are located – access for a potential caregiver without that person needing to be in the rest of the home.