A car crash at Sandy Hollow in the Hunter claimed the life of mum and foster mum Karen Ramirez in 2016.

Her seven children not only had to farewell her, but also had to contend with structural damage to the family home that meant they couldn’t live there.

Worse still, as son Mitchell Bulmer and family members worked on the repairs, vandals and thieves struck, costing them money and time.

But tradies, businesses and individuals at Dubbo rallied around them and they were finally able to move into the renovated house in time for Christmas.

This week Ms Ramirez’s daughter, Katrina Bulmer, offered thanks “from the bottom of our hearts” for the all-out effort that reunited them under one roof.

“We’ll be absolutely forever grateful for them, that we were able to finish Mum’s house and make it liveable again and get the kids home,” Ms Bulmer said.

Ms Ramirez had been in the middle of renovating her house, and she and her younger children had moved out while son Mitchell carried out repairs to structural damage in 2016.

Then tragedy struck.

As the family mourned Ms Ramirez, numerous people offered support, and an online fundraising page started by a family friend raised a few thousand dollars, Ms Bulmer said.

The help was “amazing”, but then the family faced a second blow.

The house was broken into several times, causing delays and demoralising the family.

But Ms Ramirez’s son Mitchell persevered with the help of his father-in-law Brian Coupe, while the children’s uncle, Shaun McDougall worked away as well.

Then in November the family asked all those who had offered help months earlier, who came through for them.

“That was just absolutely incredible, just the amount of people who put their hands up,” Ms Bulmer said.

Two days before Christmas, the family moved back into “Mum’s house”.

“The main priority the whole time was just to get the kids into some sort of routine, try to get back to what we can of a normal life,” Ms Bulmer said.

“It still doesn’t seem real that we actually finally finished because at some points it felt like it would never happen, but we got there in the end.”

Ms Bulmer described her mother as “selfless”, someone who would “do absolutely anything for anyone”.

“I think that’s maybe why a lot of people who did know her were so willing to come forward because they knew that’s the type of person she was,” she said.

“She always put everyone before herself.

“Then there were complete strangers who didn’t know her, but knew her through a friend of a friend of a friend, or knew of us, and were willing to help...

“I think that reflects the kind of person she was.”

Ms Bulmer and family thanked the following businesses, their staff and owners and the individuals who donated their time, supplies, vouchers or organised trades: