Cincinnati is well-known for its volunteer spirit.
Case in point: the help being provided to the parents of murder victim Kristan Strutz.
Bernie and Karen Broering have lost their daughter. Their son-in-law is charged with killing her.
Now, they have to raise Kristan’s three daughters and a son.
Help is pouring in from all over Greater Cincinnati.
The Broerings didn’t asked for assistance. The help just started arriving a month ago after Kristan was first reported missing.
Construction sounds fill the Broering’s Delhi Township home these days to create spaces for the four grandchildren. All are under the age of 12. Three have cystic fibrosis.
Carpeting is being replaced, bedroom furniture is being assembled and the two-story home is getting a kid-friendly extreme makeover.
Family, friends, neighbors and co-workers are making sure the family has everything it needs to raise the youngsters.
"We’ve called it a labor of love because we’ve come to give them a fresh start," said Stacey Steeds, who works with Karen Broering in the Emergency Room at Mercy Mount Airy Hospital.
Steeds and Kim Tice have spearheaded the effort.
"It just kind of snowballed," Tice said. "It’s kind of a wonderful thing – a lot of work – but a wonderful thing to get prepared for the girls to live here."
Everyone in the emergency room got involved. That includes paramedics, churches and employee spouses.
"It’s made it a little bit easier for Bernie and Karen to deal with the grief and emotion to know that they can walk in the door to a fresh, clean start," Steeds added.
Neighbor Tim Paffe has provided much of the carpentry work. On Thursday, he and Bernie and Karen’s brother-in-law, Bob Hennies, were assembling new furniture for the girls’ bedrooms.
Parts of beds, dressers and desks were everywhere. So were instruction sheets. Paffe and Hennies breezed through their tasks.
"Just keeping busy and helping family," Hennies commented.
Paffe said he was thrilled to be able to convert space for the children, especially with their special needs.
"We’ve completely revamped this house in just maybe two weeks," he said. "So, it’s been great."
If Bernie and Karen have a need – any need – all they have to do is mention it to Tice, Steeds, Paffe or Hennies and it will be met.
"I can’t say thank you enough because it helps out – helps us get settled in," Bernie said.
Karen expressed a similar sentiment.
"The fact that they’re doing this for our daughter is an amazing, loving act," she said.
"And they know what she meant to us," Bernie added.
A "Strutz Girls Benefit Fund" has been set up with Fifth-Third Bank. Donations can be made at any branch.
Several fund raisers are planned, including one on Saturday, October 24 at the Powell Crosley mansion on Kipling Avenue in Mt. Airy.
A web site called "justiceforkristan.com" has been created for interested parties to keep informed on the John Strutz murder case and for information on the Broering family.
