Bridget McGing had her sights on buying her first home in early 2023.
Bridget, a 32-year-old pediatric nurse, grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and moved to the city in 2015. She was living in a condo when she started to get the itch to buy a home.
“I have a dog, so I wanted a yard,” Bridget told Business Insider. “And I love real estate. I love home renovations and home decor.”
When she saw a Tudor-style fixer-upper built in 1944, she knew it was the home for her.
“The family that owned it before me had owned it for 70 years, and they took really, really, really good care of it,” Bridget said. “I fell in love with the charm and the character. There’s arched doorways, and it’s just very cute and the right size for me.”
Plus, the home featured an unfinished attic that took up an entire floor.
“It was just a blank space,” Bridget said. “My dad and my mom were with me at the showing, and we all were like, ‘Oh, my gosh, how cool would this be if I finished it and made it extra living space?'”
Bridget purchased the home in March 2023 and planned to update several parts. She also wanted to completely renovate the attic into an additional living area. This would benefit herself and her brother and sister, who planned to live in the house, too.
Bridget knew right away that her dad, Bill, would be her partner in the renovation. Bill was an electrician for 40 years and converted his attic into a living space when Bridget was young. He was the perfect man for the job.
The renovation gave Bridget and Bill quality time together
“The day that I got the keys, my dad and I were like, ‘OK, let’s go get started,'” Bridget said.
They first worked together on her kitchen before starting on the attic in October 2023. They decided to add two bedrooms and a bathroom to the floor, making it a whole new living space in the home.
Bill was with Bridget every step of the way.
“This is just what we did on our days off,” Bridget said. “If he didn’t know how to do it, he was YouTubing it, and then we’d come here and figure it out together. We have a lot of skilled contractors in our circle of friends and family, so he would call them and be like, ‘Hey, are we on the right track with this?'”
“He was my No. 1 guy,” she said of her dad, adding that she started documenting the renovation on TikTok with Bill frequently behind and in front of the camera for her videos.
The pair worked on the attic together for months, setting it up for plumbing and framing up almost the entire space for rooms.
But on March 4, 2024, Bill was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. He died three months later.
“The last time we worked up there was in February,” Bridget said.
A sign from Bill
Bridget took a break from working in the attic to be with her dad after his diagnosis and in the initial weeks after his death.
But eventually, she was ready to restart the project, even though she was anxious about moving forward without her dad.
“I was really nervous to insulate and put in drywall because I knew it was gonna change the look of the space, and I was worried it would feel like I’m getting rid of my memories with him if I changed the space, even though it was our plan,” Bridget said.
But the morning the insulation process was going to begin, she felt like she got a sign from her dad that everything would be okay.
“The insulators were scheduled to come, and I was like, ‘I know I need to move forward with this,’ and I was laying in bed,” Bridget remembered.
“I was the only one awake, and I swore I heard footsteps in the attic,” she said. “I texted my sister, and I’m like, ‘I swear, I heard someone walking around up there,’ and she said, ‘I’m sure it was dad just doing one last inspection.'”
“I totally agree with her,” Bridget said. “I think it was him just checking out the space before they insulated, and it’s very heartwarming.
“After I got myself to move through that, it feels so good because I know he’d be so, so, so excited that I was continuing, and he loved the way that it’s turning out,” Bridget added.
She also left a message to her dad on the framing, paying homage to him before the space transformed.
“I just wrote about how this space was possible just because of him because it’s so true,” she said. “If I didn’t have him, I wouldn’t have bought this house.”
Bridget’s heartwarming story touched many
Bridget shared her experience on TikTok, including the sign from her dad when it was insulation day. As of Wednesday, the video had over 21 million views.
“It makes me so happy to know that this many people know about my dad because I don’t think he ever would have thought that this many people would care about our project or him or have all these nice things to say about him and about me and us,” Bridget said. “What a cool testament to him and all the work he did here with me.”
Now, when she thinks about her home, Bridget said she feels grateful for the hours she and her dad spent renovating the home.
“I know somewhere someone in the universe…help me get this house in a busy market and led me here so that we could have all this time together,” Bridget said.
Bridget hopes to move into the attic in the next few months. As she continues to turn her house into her dream home, she has been reflecting on the value of community — both online and in person.
“One thing that all of this has taught me is just that when you show up for your community, they will show up for you,” she said.
