COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — A Colorado Springs woman who was the victim of a scam got a first look at her new deck Thursday after some big help from the community.

Ruth Baer hired John “Jose” Colon to build a deck for her home back in June.

The only construction completed was the framework.

“It was so wonderful. I have a hard time still believing it,” said Baer.

Especially after she was a victim of scam costing her $6,225, leaving her with an incomplete deck.

“He put in the framework and never came back,” Baer said.

“You could tell the person that was paid to do this job knew nothing about what he was doing. This isn’t something he’s a professional at, and it showed,” said Garth Hystad, owner of Colorado Custom Decks And Mosaic Outdoor Living And Landscapes.

That’s when two local companies stepped in to complete the job.

“Everything really needed to start from the ground up. There’s nothing worth keeping. And so, we started from scratch, we did it the right way,” Hystad said.

The owners of Noah’s Restoration and of Colorado Custom Decks and Mosaic Outdoor Living And Landscapes said this is a chance to show the public there are still good contractors who care and will get the job done correctly.

“It does put a lot of emphasis on the people that actually do good work. We’ve been here for 30 years and it’s been 30 years of hard work of trying to earn a great reputation everyday,” Hystad said.

Baer said she’s just happy and thankful to have help from the community.

“I think we ought to have a party,” Baer said.

Local contractors want to remind people to research anyone they plan on hiring for a project and look for copies of their license and insurance certifications as well as a business address.