News & Events

Media Contact: Bonnie Bessor

Executive Director, Rebuilding Together Baltimore

Office: 410-889-2710 │ Cell: 410-916-1062

bonnie@rtbaltimore.org

25 home repair projects completed by hundreds of volunteers in addition to community beautification projects to complement the Mayor’s Spring Cleanup in Baltimore

For Immediate Release

Baltimore, MD – On April 26, 2014, nearly 700 volunteers will repair 25 homes of low-income homeowners to celebrate the 25^th annual National Rebuilding Day in Baltimore. NOTE: Site addresses will be provided to any media representatives that call media contacts.

Rebuilding Together Baltimore (RTB) is one of over 180 Rebuilding Together affiliates across the country leading a healthy housing movement for low-income families, seniors and people with disabilities. National Rebuilding Day is the organization’s annual call to service embraced by community leaders and corporate sponsors as a way of bringing immediate, large-scale impact to communities across America.

RTB works in target neighborhoods in both Baltimore City and Baltimore County to preserve affordable homeownership and revitalize communities. On National Rebuilding Day, the 25 home repair projects will take place in Mid-Govans in Baltimore City and North Point Village in Baltimore County. RTB will also complete community beautification projects in these neighborhoods to improve public spaces.

One of the homeowners receiving home repairs is Mr. B, who is 60 years old, and has lived in his home in Baltimore City for almost 40 years. He raised his son and daughter as a single father and is proud to have sent them both to college. He still frequents his favorite local places: Dewees Park, Belvedere Square and the historic Senator Theater. After working for Verizon for 30 years, Mr. B retired, and as he gets older, he is having a hard time keeping up with home repairs.

Fifteen additional senior citizens will also receive home repairs on National Rebuilding Day in addition to five people with disabilities, nine families with children and one veteran. Eight houses will get roof repairs, volunteers will install two wheelchair ramps and every house will get new smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors. Volunteers focus on repairs that make homes warmer, safer and drier by developing scopes of work highlighting many other home safety modifications and energy efficiency improvements.

“National Rebuilding Day is a large-scale day of service when nearly 50,000 volunteers will work on close to 3,000 projects across the country,” explained Bonnie Bessor, Executive Director at RTB. “We are thrilled to celebrate our 25^th anniversary with hundreds of volunteers on such an impactful day in Baltimore.”

Booz Allen Hamilton is the Silver Anniversary Sponsor of Rebuilding Day in Baltimore. Among the other corporate sponsors providing support for this effort are Travelers, Baltimore Housing, Baltimore County Department of Planning, BGE, Fidelity & Guaranty Life, Whiteford, Taylor & Preston, and Protiviti. The 25 home repair and community beautification projects will be completed by teams of volunteers from local corporations, schools, churches and civic groups.

Rebuilding Together Baltimore is always in need of more skilled volunteers who have carpentry, plumbing and electrical experience. If you are interested in sponsoring a Rebuilding Together Baltimore project or serving as a volunteer, please visit www.RTBaltimore.org

About Rebuilding Together Baltimore

Since 1989, Rebuilding Together Baltimore (RTB) has repaired over 1,300 homes and community spaces in 35 neighborhoods in Baltimore City and County.  Rebuilding Together Baltimore works in partnership with volunteers and communities to make homes warmer, safer and drier for low-income homeowners who are seniors, people with disabilities or families with children.  In its 25-year history, Rebuilding Together Baltimore’s work represents over $8 million in value to the community.  In 2008, Rebuilding Together Baltimore was chosen by HGTV as one of five Rebuilding Together affiliates in the US for their inaugural “Change the World. Start at Home” initiative.  Rebuilding Together Baltimore is an affiliate of Rebuilding Together, Inc., a national organization with over 180 affiliates across the country.

Rebuilding Together Baltimore places a special emphasis on home safety and fall prevention for seniors and people with disabilities, providing grab bars, handrails, wheelchair ramps and other modifications that help to keep seniors and people with disabilities safe in their homes.

Rebuilding Together Baltimore assists up to 70 homeowners every year. For more information on Rebuilding Together Baltimore, or to volunteer your home repair skills call 410-889-2710 or visit www.RTBaltimore.org

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Last night we held one of our three House Captain Trainings to go over important Rebuilding Day information. This year we decided to shake things up a bit and used a game of Jeopardy to cover the material. A big shout out to Mike Faulkner for participating in his 22nd (!) Rebuilding Day as a House Captain. Also, thanks to all of the other veteran House Captains who made it out. We can’t wait for Rebuilding Day 2014!

Lookin’ good Trebek

In late January, Clara and Eric traveled to Pittsburgh, PA to participate in a week-long service event in memory of Martin Luther King Jr. There they joined over 80 other AmeriCorps members and alumni and completed 9 different home repair projects throughout the neighborhood of Hazelwood. Eric’s team removed a large amount of old carpeting and replaced it with vinyl flooring to improve the air quality of the home. Clara worked with other AmeriCorps to apply Drylok, a material that prevents moisture from enetering through walls, in a homeowner’s basement. They were so pleased to serve homeowners in need in Pittsburgh’s community and of course to be reunited with some of their favorite people!

We are excited to announce that our board of directors voted on September 25 to choose North Point Village in Dundalk as our Rebuilding Day Target Community for 2014!

North Point Village is located just off I-695 near the convergence of North Point Blvd and Wise Ave. Our staff and AmeriCorps members are already working on outreach to the community. Eric and Clara attended a community association meeting on Thursday September 26 to begin recruiting homeowner applicants, and the community members are already getting excited about RTB’s work in the neighborhood.

If you know any low-income homeowners who live in North Point Village and need home repairs, please have them call us at 410-889-2710

Map of North Point Village in Dundalk, Baltimore

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We are so excited to welcome Clara Heck and Eric Park as our 2013-2014 CapacityCorps AmeriCorps members! Clara will be serving for the next year as our AmeriCorps Outreach Coordinator and Eric is serving as AmeriCorps Service Coordinator. This is Eric’s second year with us and we are thrilled to welcome him back! Eric and Clara started on August 13th and they both dug right into doing great things for RTB.

AmeriCorps Outreach Coordinator, Clara Heck

AmeriCorps Service Coordinator, Eric Park

On June 12th, our AmeriCorps Outreach Coordinator, Eric Park, worked with a group of volunteers to install pull up bars at the ABC Park in the neighborhood of Carrollton Ridge in Southwest Baltimore as part of his service project for his AmeriCorps term. Greg Oates, one of RTB’s A-Team volunteers, provided huge support in the planning and execution of the project. His technical expertise ensured that the pull up bar posts were installed securely and turned out level. Sarah Hope from Baltimore City Department of Recreation and Parks, provided the recycled building materials, and also offered a lot of guidance in implementing the service project. Derrick, a staff member at Rec & Parks, also joined the volunteers for the day and assisted with priming the swing sets and the new pull up bars at ABC Park.

Sarah and Derrick prime the new pull up bars

Greg Oates secures the clamps on the pull up bars.

Derwin Hannah, a community organizer in the neighborhood, has over the past year taken on a great deal of responsibility in overseeing the safety and well-being of the park and the neighborhood residents who use the public space. Derwin has done an incredible job at gaining support from the community and bringing in local business including the Food Depot and others at the neighborhood shopping center. He has been striving tirelessly to make the park a safer, nicer place for residents to enjoy, and has been partnering with Fran Spero, Joe Burch, and other employees at Rec and Parks to explore new sources of support and funding from the city to help build on the momentum of Derwin’s efforts. Eric Park was extremely please to be able to get involved with such an engaged coalition of park supporters who helped to make this project happen.

This Saturday, June 15th, volunteers from the neighborhood will come together to beautify the park and also the celebrate the new fitness equipment and the summer programs at ABC Park. Thanks to everyone involved for all of your work in making this project a success!

(From L to R) Greg, Derrick, Sarah, Derwin, and Eric