Rebuilding Together L/A Maine spent Saturday, its annual Rebuilding Day, helping four area homeowners with various projects in Lewiston and Auburn.
Groups comprising chapter board members, many local real estate agents, Bates College students and staff, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and others joined in the fix-it frenzy.
Bates College alumnus John Scott Johnson started Rebuilding Together’s L/A chapter in 2002. Johnson is the son of Patricia Johnson, who founded the national organization Rebuilding Together in Washington, D.C., in 1988.
Board member John Ouellette headed up a project on Northern Avenue in Auburn. He said the organization’s mission is to help people continue living in their homes safely and that often requires making some simple, but costly repairs to their homes. Chapter President Shanna Green said the organization gets a lot of help from the community, particularly financial help from the various real estate groups and other businesses, and volunteer labor to get the projects done.
“I’ve always said if you can do something for other people and not expect anything in return, that’s like the best thing,” Green said. “We just get a great satisfaction out of knowing we’re helping keep people in their homes because they can’t afford to do this, they can’t afford to keep it up.”
Judy Rysk has lived in her Paul Street home in Lewiston for 30 years. It is where she raised her family and worked until retirement. Now by herself, she said she is not the type to come out and ask for help, but retired homeowners living on a fixed income can only do so much and have to let go of almost anything they would need to hire someone for.
“The idea that an organization like this exists to help older homeowners on limited income is fabulous,” Rysk said. “The fact that they exist is really phenomenal.”
Local contractor and Lewiston native Alan Hahnel managed the work at Rysk’s home, which included crew of over 20 from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The project involved staining front entry stairs and a side porch, hanging new gutters and cleaning out a garage. Hahnel, like many of the organization’s board members, has been taking part since the beginning in 2002.
“I’m in construction and have always been charitable to the community … and I do this because I see the need and it makes me feel good,” Hahnel said. “There are lots of great things about this community and this organization is one of them.”
Board members and sisters Alina Burke and Linda Churchill helped at the Northern Avenue project. Burke pushed Churchill to join the organization some time after joining near the beginning. However, Burke said it is hard to remember exactly when she started because she has always associated her time there with her kids’ milestones.
“My daughter was painting a blue house when she was 3 and came home with bright blonde hair with blue all over it, and it took like a week to get it out,” Burke said. “That’s the stuff I remember. My kids have always worked alongside us and … It’s something we really look forward to.”
Lincoln Mulliner, 9, and his father, Jared Mulliner, were among the many families working on Rysk’s house. Lincoln helped Hahnel prepare the eaves for new gutters and took a break to help his father carry some wood back to one of the trucks. “It actually feels really nice,” Lincoln said of helping.
“It’s great the kids are willing to participate,” Jared Mulliner said. “We try to do service with the family and … it’s really nice to do something together.”
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