EAST HELENA -- There's no other way to put it -- Levi Amstutz lived in squalor.

The floor in the 70-year-old man's house had rotted. Outdoor paneling separated the kitchen from the living room. Mice lived in his couch, while mold and mildew created tie-dye patterns on the walls.

Back in what served as the bathroom, his toilet no longer worked. The dryer sat in a trailer backed up to the door. The showerhead consisted of a garden hose, the water draining into a tank in the cellar, emptied by a pump in the kitchen.

"If I had had the time and money, I would have had things in better shape," Amstutz said while standing in his yard, which is home to a half-dozen rusting trailers. "I don't think I collect things I don't use."

Five years ago, as many as 80 refrigerators surrounded his property, creating a fence, not to mention the discerning looks of neighbors. The health department told him to clean it up, but he couldn't, so the community rallied to help, making a dozen trips to the dump.

The Alabama native lives on Social Security and mows lawns to make extra money. He argues that he's not a packrat, he's just preparing for bad times.

"I try to collect a few extra things," he explained in his soft voice. "There will probably be some bad times ahead. But I don't have much in the way of food, and I don't have an emergency generator."

Amstutz found himself on the receiving end of some hard work and charity again this summer. His latest chapter began when he -- fearful of losing his crumbling home -- set off to the bank to get a conventional loan.

There, he met Kelly Dewolf, a home mortgage consultant for Wells Fargo. The banker got Amstutz's information before arriving to tour his property in accordance with the loan process.

"He was called 'the refrigerator man' -- he was a human packrat," Dewolf said. "His house was so loaded with stuff I couldn't even walk around. It was never going to get through an FAA appraisal."

Taken by Amstutz's humble ways, Dewolf wanted to help, but his home was in such poor condition, he feared any type of loan would be a long shot.

But luck was on his side. He contacted Cindy Donnell, an area specialist with the USDA Rural Development program, who helped Amstutz apply for a $20,000 loan.

The loan, Donnell explained, is available to low-income homeowners who live outside the Helena city limits. Payable at 1 percent over 20 years, it can be used for health, safety or sanitary home improvement needs.

"We see a lot of people who need help out there," Donnell said. "We're dealing with rural areas. We try to get the word out to all the lenders and Realtors in the state, so they know about the program if someone needs help."

With the loan secure, Dewolf began his search for a contractor. Those he spoke with, however, were unmoved by Amstutz's plight. They suggested he tear the house down -- it was too far gone.

Dewolf searched the phone book and found Rick White, a contractor who moved three years ago from Portland. Not even White, with his 28 years experience, was prepared for the task at hand.

"There was so much to do," he said Friday, standing in a bedroom which Amstutz now uses as a tool shed. "It caught me by surprise, and it took me two weeks just to get it emptied out so I could work."

White dragged out fetid furniture and tore out carpet. He hauled nine refrigerators and freezers from the house, along with four stoves. He made several trips to the dump, putting a dent in Amstutz's unusual collection.

Working on that shoestring budget of $20,000, he replaced the floor, remodeled the kitchen and built new walls. He brought in a new stove, gutted the bathroom and plumbing, and rebuilt the interior from the floor up.

White even dug into his own pocket to buy Amstutz some clean, used furniture from Good Will, not to mention a curtain or two.

"I just feel there was a reason the contractors turned him down," White said. "It was my way of giving a personal focus to bless him with."

Amstutz says he likes the work White has done on the place. He still runs as many as five refrigerators in the house, and he has work to do in arranging his living room.

He admits that he misses his old refrigerator fence.

"I guess they don't like that kind of fence," Amstutz said. "When I applied for that mortgage, I wanted to have some money to build a fence around."

Reporter Martin Kidston: 447-4086 or mkidston@helenair.com