Defiant senior rejects million-dollar offer for house so mall’s forced to build around it
Some things are more important than money. Like a family home that means a lot to you. For one elderly woman, her dedication to her family’s home led to her turning down a million dollars. Then, a hilarious workaround ensued.
Edith Macefield, 84, knows what matters in life.
She doesn’t care about money or fancy things. But she does value her loved ones, her memories, and her family home. So when she was offered a $1,000,000 deal to sell her home so developers could tear it down and build a mall, she knew immediately that the deal had no chance. She told them no and continued to enjoy her home.
Her home was 100 years old, which is part of the reason why it was so important that she preserve it.
It’s a part of history! That house could tell so many stories with all the history that happened in the world during that time.
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She decided to defy the developers and make their work a little harder. A lot of people supported her, and some people even left notes around her house.
Edith has a history of rebellious behavior.
Starting at age 16, she started to do just what she wanted to do. At that age, she told her mother that she was going to college, but ended up enrolling in the army and getting sent to the United Kingdom. Eventually, the military figured out what was up with her and discharged her for lying about her age.
That didn’t stop Edith though. She stayed in England and took in orphans and played in the Royal Marching Band. She’s done a lot in life!
Eventually, she moved back to the States, where she moved to Ballard, Washington.
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This is the town where she moved into her beloved home. The stalemate between real estate developers and her started here. It was in 2007 that she refused to move. Her refusal meant that developers had to literally build around her in order to create their building complex. They had bought up the whole block except her house.
With the development completed, the neighborhood looked a lot different, but Edith’s house stood strong.
In what used to be a sweet community with small wooden houses now stand concrete buildings that house shops and businesses. But Edith’s house is also sandwiched in there, and it looks even more unique and beautiful.
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The house may have even been the inspiration for the Disney movie Up, which features a house that experiences development all around it. Disney even promoted the film by attaching balloons to this house, an image from the movie.
Edith passed away, but her story inspired everyone, even the developers.
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Despite an uncertain future at the time of her passing, the house still remains. The house had originally gone into the possession of a friend, but it was later foreclosed on and got into the hands of the developers. However, the developers had grown a respect for her and decided to keep the house standing and incorporate it into their complex.
One developer says this is now a testament to the inspiring woman:
“Honestly, I think weāre a lot alike,ā a developer once said about Macefield. ā Iām stubborn and so was she. Weāve had some incredible arguments. She was amazingly smart. I think this illustrateās Edithās character”
Watch the video below to learn more about this incredible woman and her house!
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Source: BostWiki, Fox13 Seattle