Moment of triumph for whistle-blower takes a tragic turn

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Moment of triumph for whistle-blower takes a tragic turn

Woman, whose fight for housing repair revealed government waste,

dies in her home

By MIKE SNYDER

Houston Chronicle

Dec. 28, 2008, 11:29PM

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6184885.html

MICHAEL PAULSEN CHRONICLE

Marsha Farmer had spent nearly eight years combating mismanagement

in a city-run, home repair program.

She saw her repair bill, then blew the whistle on a massive scam

(Dec. 26) PHOTO GALLERY

Still waiting for repairs GRAPHIC

$15,000 charged to taxpayers, $9,212 apparently bogus; a look at one

house On Friday, a city inspector arrived at Marsha Farmer's Houston

home to deliver long-awaited news: Her mold-damaged house would get

fixed — repairs she first applied for through a city-run program in

2001.

That day, the Houston Chronicle had published a front-page article

about Farmer's experience with the home repair program and her role

in exposing its mismanagement. Farmer was happy and optimistic.

But the next day, the woman who spent almost eight years trying to

stop the waste of public funds in the home repair program died in

her northwest Houston house. The 58-year-old was discovered on her

sofa by a neighbor, said Farmer's son, . A friend of

Farmer's had contacted the neighbor after growing concerned when

Farmer failed to show up for a visit, said.

" It seemed like she'd been taking a nap on the couch and just didn't

wake up, " said.

The County Medical Examiner's Office said the cause of death

had not been determined Sunday. said police who came to the

scene said it appeared his mother had died of natural causes.

With her death, her impact as a whistle-blower takes on a poignant

new dimension. Farmer's complaints to government officials about the

federally funded home repair program and subsequent lawsuit helped

trigger an investigation by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban

Development that led to a temporary shutdown of the program.

Documents Farmer obtained through open records laws and a lawsuit

showed that contractors in the home repair program routinely billed

the city for excessive materials and for work that wasn't performed

or was done poorly.

HUD's inquiries into the program led the agency to discover improper

spending in other federally funded city-housing programs, prompting

a demand for repayment of $15.5 million. The city paid the first of

five installments Dec. 1.

Farmer qualified for the free program because of disability. She

said she became disabled in 1998 due to chronic fatigue syndrome.

She also suffered from heart disease, she said.

Farmer said she was extremely sensitive to the mold that grew in her

house after it was flooded by Tropical Storm in June 2001.

She had sealed off one bedroom because of mold and draped plastic

over walls in other rooms.

Her illness was aggravated by the stress of her long struggle with

the city, Farmer told the Chronicle recently.

''I knew trying to stop the waste would not be good for my health,

but I also knew I had to try, " Farmer said in an e-mail.

Although her lawsuit against the city and one of its former home

repair contractors, the Houston Area Urban League, wasn't

successful, two federal judges who reviewed the case cited her role

in bringing problems in the program to light.

Repairs sought in 2001

Farmer was born Jan. 1, 1950, in Louisville, Ky. She later lived in

St. Louis and moved to Houston in 1974. She earned a bachelor's

degree from Edison State College in Trenton, N.J., in 1992

while working for Houston-based Enron Corp. She also worked as a

bookkeeper and in legal offices.

In 1987 she moved into her Oak Forest house. She first applied for

repairs to the house in January 2001, but flooded the house

while she was still on a city waiting list.

Farmer had lived on Social Security disability payments since she

became disabled. Starting in 2002, she began assembling home repair

program documents from the city and its contractors, keeping boxes

of files stacked in her living room and building a computer database.

The day before her death, a city inspector came to Farmer's house to

complete an evaluation for repairs. The city's Department of Housing

and Community Development reopened her case after the Chronicle

inquired about it.

After Friday's inspection, Farmer said, the city agreed to make

repairs including new electrical wiring, new siding, structural

repairs and new drywall in rooms affected by mold for a total

estimated cost of $45,000 to $50,000.

" I should end up with a good, strong house that's ready for another

50 years, " Farmer said.

It wasn't clear Sunday whether the repairs would proceed. City

housing department officials couldn't be reached.

Kathy Zuelzke, the friend Farmer was scheduled to visit Saturday,

said she had agreed to wrap gifts for Farmer to give to her son and

grandchildren, who she was planning to visit over the weekend.

said the last time he spoke to his mother, she seemed happy

that her house would finally be repaired.

Funeral arrangements hadn't been finalized Sunday.

mike.snyder@...

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(4)

dmcf13 wrote:

Thats a shame. I hope this wears heavy on the head of JUdge Ellison

who ruled against her. He should be embarassed by his own ruling.

GOD bless her.

maybe her family can sue the city, HUD and Judge Ellison for putting

such a burden on her shoulders.

12/29/2008 12:35:46 AM

Recommend: (359) (22) [Report abuse]

(0)

gabby58 wrote:

The city should still have to live up to it's legal responsibilites

and finish the repairs on the house. Her faimly will inherit it and

shouldn't have to hassle with it. You also don't know how much of a

role the stress of the lawsuit or breathing the mold played in her

death.

12/29/2008 12:43:37 AM

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(0)

roadgeek wrote:

Why, exactly, is the government in the business of repairing houses?

Is home repair a core function of government? Why aren't churches

and civic groups doing this sort of thing? Her children? Too bad

she's dead, but this mess illustrates what happens when government

programs run rampant; money is wasted and good intentions go astray.

12/29/2008 1:15:28 AM

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(1)

Mr_Magoo wrote:

The shock of finally getting approved for repairs may have been a

strong contributor to her passing. From this story and the one a few

days ago, she seemed like a fine, smart, lady who saw a wrong and

tried to right it. She helped all of us by uncovering fraud and

mismanagement. Rest in peace Marsha.

12/29/2008 2:51:48 AM

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(0)

RU12 wrote:

Natural causes, BULL ! I small a rat.

12/29/2008 1:17:37 AM

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