July 1 — In the lead up to Fourth of July Weekend, dozens of youth and adult, skilled volunteers from Jesse Lee Memorial United Methodist Church in Ridgefield have dedicated this week to tackle massive home repairs for two low-income veterans in Bethel who served our country. In partnership with HomeFront, these volunteers are nearing completion of five full days of hands on repair assistance concludes on Friday, July 1. All of the improvements are made at no cost to the beneficiaries. By the time their work is done, HomeFront will have assisted 80 families in need with home repairs since the start of the pandemic. With more than 800 requests for help, HomeFront’s goal is to assist 80 more by the end of 2021. For Jesse Lee volunteers, this is a new spin on their decades of organizing volunteers to revitalize homes in Appalachia. Upwards of 50 church members are focusing their efforts in Bethel, an initiative dubbed, “Jesse Lee Appalachian Service Project (ASP) at Home.” Meanwhile, some 85 volunteers are continuing their decades-long tradition of making homes warmer, safer and drier in West Virginia.
The grateful beneficiaries include one Bethel veteran on Summit Lane who served our nation in the US Navy during the 1960s. The home that he and his wife have known for 47 years will receive a newly installed wheelchair ramp and replaced steps for safer egress. Construction-skilled staff from HomeFront removed trees, repaired their roof and prepped the siding to be re-done by Jesse Lee Church volunteers. A new exterior paint job, mended garage door and extensive landscaping are further gifts these volunteers are bringing to this deserving couple. Just across town, an equally impressive crew of volunteers from Jesse Lee is helping a 64-year-old veteran on Hawleyville Road who also served in the US Navy. Tremendous pain from a fractured spine and femur have kept this veteran from keeping up with accumulating repair needs. The volunteers’ mission at this home encompasses extensive exterior sealing through the installation of windows, trim, framing and rot repair. This crew will also be remedying unsafe front and side steps and railings, tackling landscaping repairs for safety purposes and adding fresh coats of paint.
The Home Depot Foundation has subsidized many of these ambitious projects as part of their commitment to serve veterans. By 2025, The Home Depot Foundation will have delivered $625 million toward veteran causes since 2011. Their generosity has benefited 50,000 homes and facilities for veterans to date.
The collective compassion of hands on volunteers, product contributors, foundations and other donors brings HomeFront to the mark of more than 3,000 homes revitalized in program history, delivering $50 million of service where needed most. HomeFront is a community-based program dedicated to keeping low-income homeowners in their homes with an improved quality of life through substantial repairs completed at no cost to them. More information on HomeFront can be found online at: www.homefrontprogram.org.
Media Contact
Sean O’Brien, HomeFront
O: (203) 658-9664 C: (203) 803-9772
sobrien@homefrontprogram.org