34°
That's the pitch for the new season of "Divine Renovation, Destination: New England," a home renovation show filmed entirely in northwestern Connecticut. The first episode will premiere on Saturday, Oct. 19, at 5:30 a.m. on Fox 61 in Hartford and will air each Saturday for four more weeks.
The episodes are also currently streaming on Amazon Prime, Tubi, and Roku, among other platforms. The first season, filmed in North Carolina, can also be viewed on those streamers.
Erik Estrada, of "CHiPs" fame, will host the five-episode season. He will guide viewers as crews work to renovate, repair, rebuild, and rehab four homes and facilities needing some TLC, in Southbury, Torrington, Winsted, and New Hartford.
Producers Monty Hobbs and Valerie Smaldone, of Just Do GOOD Entertainment, chose Connecticut for the show's second season because they'd filmed other projects there and fell in love with the area and the state's picturesque landscapes.
The show's aim, they said, is restoring communities, not just homes.
"We work with not-for-profits, local houses of worship, schools, and municipalities to bring in the community members to work with us," Smaldone told Daily Voice. "As an example, in the episode, 'I Call it Home' we have school children help with plants, they also serve lemonade and popcorn to the group, and we had volunteers from an adult ESL organization volunteer. It takes a village to make these enhancements, and our goal is to bring people together."
That theme of uniting a community around a common goal is the cornerstone for "Divine Renovation, Destination: New England," Hobbs added.
"We believe everyone has a story and path, and whatever your religion or beliefs, we are all in the same place together," he said. "Do good for your neighbor and be kind is the most important message we can express."
One of the projects they say that exemplifies what the show is about is in an episode titled "Path to Grace," where crews helped make a quadriplegic man's home more accessible and then threw an engagement party for him and his fiancee. (Click here to watch that episode.)
Smaldone called those moments in the show a "spiritual uplift."
In another, they helped a couple celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary. The couple has five children, one of which has special needs, and likely wouldn't have had the time or energy to commemorate the event
Ultimately, Smaldone said, the show is about leaving a family, a home, and a community better than how they found it.
"We like to be able to provide things that help long after we leave," Hobbs added. "Every house or facility is unique; more importantly, the area is critical. We like to make so much noise when we share with them that they have new friends long after we leave."
Click here to follow Daily Voice East Hartford and receive free news updates.
