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Thank you
May - July 2026
When I first introduced you to Heather and her family this spring, I shared how contractor fraud had transformed what should have been an exciting chapter into years of uncertainty. Like many Restoring Trust® projects, I knew this one would take time. Finding businesses willing to donate their expertise is never easy, especially during the busiest months of the construction season. But I also knew there were good people out there who would want to help if they could.
Today, I'm excited to share that because of several BBB Accredited Businesses stepping forward, this home is meaningfully closer to the finish line.
The first update comes from Ryan Hargrave, owner of Renen Builders, who has continued making the trip from Kalispell to Marion whenever his schedule allows. As many contractors in Flathead County know, spring and summer are incredibly busy, and Ryan has been balancing this donated work alongside his commitments to paying customers.
Over the past several months, Ryan has installed all of the flooring throughout the upstairs of the home, including the children's bedrooms, which was one of Heather's biggest priorities so their family could begin using that space safely. He has also installed the kitchen cabinets and completed most of the stair railing, contributing more than $8,500 in donated labor through multiple trips to the property.
For a family that has spent years being displaced while building this home themselves, each completed room represents far more than construction progress. It represents another step toward living like a family again.
Another major milestone came through BBB Accredited Business Wapiti Electric.
After learning about Heather's situation, the owner, David Engle, stepped in to complete the home's remaining electrical trim work. His donation included installing exterior lighting, interior fixtures, outlets, garage door connections, and the electrical work for the kitchen island; all critical items that help move a house from "under construction" to truly functional.
Altogether, David donated more than $1,400 in labor and materials, helping ensure the home is not only closer to finished, but also safe and ready for everyday living.
One of the things I've come to appreciate most about Restoring Trust is that not every business contributes in the same way. Sometimes the greatest gift is donated labor. Other times it's materials. And sometimes it's simply removing a financial barrier that seemed impossible to overcome.
That brings me to another encouraging development.
Heather had purchased their kitchen cabinetry through The RTA Store, but still needed cabinets for their office and laundry spaces. Like so many other items affected by the fraud, completing those spaces had fallen out of the family's budget.
After I shared Heather's story with the RTA Store team, they immediately wanted to help. They generously offered complimentary design services for both rooms and agreed to provide the cabinetry at their cost whenever the family is ready to move forward, representing a savings of more than $6,000.
What I appreciate most about this gesture is that there isn't an expiration date attached to it. The family can continue focusing on the essentials today, knowing that when they're financially ready, this opportunity will still be waiting for them. That's exactly the kind of flexibility and compassion that makes these partnerships so meaningful.
There is still work ahead.
The downstairs flooring and the remaining portions of the stair railing still need to be completed, and we're continuing our search for an HVAC contractor willing to help install the home's mini-split systems. I won't pretend it's been easy. Flathead County's building season is in full swing, and many of the businesses we've spoken with are booked months in advance. But that's the reality of these projects. Sometimes progress comes in big leaps, and sometimes it comes one relationship, one conversation, and one generous business at a time.
When I look at this project today, I don't just see flooring, electrical work, or cabinets. I see business owners choosing to invest in their community. I see a family refusing to give up. And I see proof that while contractor fraud can leave lasting damage, it doesn't have to write the final chapter.
We'll continue sharing updates as this project progresses. If you're a contractor, supplier, or business in the Flathead County area and think you may be able to help us complete these final pieces, I'd love to hear from you.
You can reach me at [email protected].
Yours in trust,
Meghan Conradt, Director of BBB Foundation
Project contributors
Accredited Business
Renen Builders
Founded by Ryan Hargrave in 2017, Renen Builders is built on hard work, integrity, and honest, affordable construction. Ryan donated his time to install flooring, a stair railing, and cabinets to help move the home closer to completion.
Accredited Business
Wapiti Electric
Owner-operated by David Engle, Wapiti Electric serves Kalispell and the Flathead Valley with a focus on quality workmanship. David donated more than $1,400 in labor and materials to complete the home’s electrical trim.
Read the full story
March - April 2026
My name is Meghan Conradt and I’m the Director of BBB Foundation, the social impact arm of Better Business Bureau. As we continue to grow the Restoring Trust® program, I’m constantly reminded of something that sits at the core of every project we take on: contractor fraud doesn’t just disrupt construction timelines, it disrupts lives for significant periods of time. It creates financial strain, safety concerns and an overwhelming sense of uncertainty about who to trust next. Restoring Trust exists because we believe families deserve better, and because we know there are ethical businesses who want to step in and help make things right.
Our newest project brings us to Marion, Montana.
Heather and her family set out to build a home for themselves, something stable and lasting for their future. They did their homework, hired a general contractor based on references from their church, and trusted the process. At first, everything appeared to be moving forward as planned.
But over time, that trust began to unravel.
Heather reports that the contractor, Kirichkov Construction, significantly underbid the project and ultimately walked off the job, leaving her family to pick up the pieces. He also hired subcontractors who either failed to complete work or, in some cases, created serious safety concerns. One plumbing contractor, Mountain Plumbing, accepted an upfront deposit of over $8,000 from Heather directly and never returned. Another by the name of Patrick McLearney performed work that left open gas lines and water pipes behind closed walls, creating dangerous conditions that had to be identified and corrected later. Ultimately, the family lost over $57,000 because of these contractor mistakes and fraud, causing a serious concern over whether they could keep their biggest investment: their home.
Heather was referred to the Restoring Trust program by an Accredited plumber she hired to complete the plumbing scope safely and to code. I spoke with them to say “thank you” for the referral and find out if they’d like to be involved more deeply in the program. At this time, they had already discounted all they could and weren’t in a position to donate services, but it was still encouraging that a BBB Accredited Business was aware of the program and pointed consumers in need our way.
By the time I connected with Heather, she and her husband had already taken on the role of general contractor themselves, working day in and day out to keep the project moving forward. They’re not only building a home, but they’re also running their own business and homeschooling their two children, all while being displaced from a house they should've moved into last year.
Despite everything, they’ve made incredible progress. The home is about three-quarters complete. But as anyone in construction knows, the final stretch is often the most complex and costly.
To help get the word out, we pitched this story to our local media partners and KRTV3 picked it up and went to the house directly to capture everything. You can see Heather, their home, and what we’re trying to help with here: Better Business Bureau helps Marion family finish their dream home
There are still critical pieces needed to make the home safe, functional and complete: finishing electrical work, installing flooring, completing interior trim and doors, installing a stair railing, securing essential kitchen appliances, installing cabinets and laying gravel in their front driveway. Plumbing has required significant rework due to earlier issues, and even now, the costs to safely finish that scope continue to add up.
When I spoke with Heather, what stood out to me most was her determination. Her focus has been on doing whatever it takes to finish the home, so her family doesn’t lose their most important investment. Every minute of her family’s spare time is spent learning about construction and then doing what they can with friends and family to get it a little closer to finished every single day.
This is where Restoring Trust steps in.
Through this program, we’re working to connect Heather and her family with trusted Accredited Businesses and community partners in the Flathead County area who are willing to invest their time, expertise and resources to help bring this project across the finish line. The first business owner to step forward is Ryan Hargrave, owner of Renen Builders, a local Accredited Business who happened to have a window between larger projects and saw an opportunity to help.
When I spoke with Ryan, his kindness and willingness to listen was immediately apparent. He shared that he’d need to see the scope of work in person, but didn’t hesitate to say he wanted to be involved. Even though he’s based in Kalispell, the drive out to Marion is no small trip, especially into the mountains where Heather’s home sits. Still, he made the time to visit the property, meet Heather face-to-face, and fully understand what her family needs to move forward.
After that visit, Ryan committed to helping install flooring, stair railings and cabinets, all materials that are already on site, but require a skilled hand to bring them to completion.
This is exactly what Restoring Trust is built on. The program works because of business owners like Ryan, who choose to show up, give back, and lead by example. These contributions may seem like individual pieces, but together, they move this family significantly closer to a finished home, and to a renewed sense of trust in the people around them.
If you are a contractor, supplier, or business in the Kalispell or Flathead County area and are interested in helping with any of the other needs mentioned above, I would love to connect with you. Every contribution, big or small, brings this family one step closer to moving into their home.
You can reach me at [email protected].
Yours in trust,
Meghan Conradt, Director of BBB Foundation
MARION — A Marion family's dream home project hit a major setback after a contractor dispute left the build unfinished, but the Better Business Bureau is now stepping in to help them finish what they started.
"It was our dream property. We started with a dream home, it's not our dream home anymore," said property owner Heather Boone.
take the next step
Our Foundation delivers on BBB's mission of advancing marketplace trust by providing consumer protection and business recognition programs to our community.
BBB Business and Consumer Foundation | 2340 S. Eagle Rd., Meridian, ID 83642 | (208) 342-4649
EIN: 31-1766810
