An NIU student and his family are finalists in a home improvement contest and hope for public votes to help them win the $20,000 prize.

Jeremy Klein, junior elementary education major, and his family entered the contest hosted by 95.9 FM The River after hearing about it during his commute to NIU. The family with the most public votes will win a $20,000 gift certificate from Opal Enterprises of Naperville to be used for home improvement.

Klein said if his family wins, they will use the money for improvements on their Bloomingdale home including new windows and gutter repair.

The public can vote at opalsultimatemakeover.com.