Helping neighbors to live safer and healthier

An elderly Milwaukee couple is living in a safer home, thanks to a partnership between several area programs.
Gladys and Amos have lived in their duplex on N. 24th for more than 40 years and raised a large family there. They have both suffered from health challenges in recent years and have had a hard time keeping their home maintained as they would like. And that is where Rebuilding Together Greater Milwaukee, the Dominican Center and the Social Development Commission (SDC) stepped up to the plate.
The house was identified to be part of Rebuilding Day on Saturday, May 17, 2014. That day sees volunteers improve the homes of low-income elderly and/or disabled homeowners so they can remain living in them independently. A crew that included a dozen staff members from SDC spent the day at Gladys and Amos’ home as part of that special day. During the day, they focused on measures designed to make the home safer and more accessible for the couple.
Work completed included putting up new walls in a bathroom, fixing the tub and plumbing, putting in new lighting throughout the living unit, patching a leaky roof, landscaping and fence repair, installing hand rails, servicing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, and painting. When the full day’s work was complete, the couple and their son expressed their happiness and gratitude at all the work that had been finished. The improvements will allow them to remain living comfortably and safely in their home for years to come.
The volunteers who worked on the Rebuilding Together project also found that they were walking away from the day with something as well. They said that while the work was exhausting, it was also extremely rewarding. They added that they have marked the calendar already for next year’s Rebuilding project.
Staff from SDC’s Residential Services programs has volunteered for Rebuilding Day for several years in a row. This year they were joined by others from the agency who shared in the hard but gratifying work. To learn more about the Rebuilding Together Greater Milwaukee project, visit www.rtmilwaukee.org/.