Zoe Warner
•8/20/2026
CAPE CORAL, Fla. (WINK)—Cape Coral is now home to Florida's first-ever St. Jude Dream Home Showplace, a project that will help raise money for childhood cancer research and treatment.
Community leaders, builders and neighbors gathered Thursday morning to celebrate the groundbreaking of the project, which will raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
District 2 Councilwoman Laurie Lehmann spoke at the celebration about what this moment means for the city.
"I think it's a milestone in Cape Coral. It's a wonderful thing where we're helping set us, you know, do something that is going to just shine for the whole community, for St. Jude's," she said.
Sheri Harris, co -leader of the Bahnam Builders sales team, explained why this project goes beyond just building a home.
"Parents deserve when their child is fighting for their life. Those parents deserve not to have to worry about anything but getting that child well, and that's what St. Jude does. So this is so much more than about just building a beautiful home. This is about bringing together families," Harris said.
The home will be built by Bahnam Builders and funded through community support along with donated labor and materials from vendors, partners and national sponsors.
Harris also highlighted just how far childhood cancer treatment has come.
"When St. Jude started, childhood cancer survival was largely considered incurable, with only about 20% of children surviving. We are now over 80% and St. Jude's goal is that no child will ever die of cancer. Their mission is to find cures. Their mission is to save children," said Harris.
Sen. John Martin also shared what St. Jude means to so many people.
"St. Jude gives not just the little kids hope; they give us hope, not just in an immediate recovery, hope for a medical miracle, but hope in humanity," Martin said.
Construction is expected to begin at the start of next year with the home set to be completed by the end of 2027.
