A Mother's Day Weekend Local Homeowners in Need Will Never Forget

More than 3,000 local residents had a funny way of spending Mother’s Day Weekend. Across 32 cities in Connecticut and Westchester County, they banded together to revitalize the homes of 57 low-income neighbors who were perfect strangers to them before, as well as seven community centers lacking the budgets to make essential repairs. 

It was the 24th annual HomeFront Day. During a week filled with international news of heroics, in our own backyard, we witnessed neighbors in need who showed enough courage and faith in their neighbor to ask for help. Although economists would place the beginning of the Great Recession quite some time ago, based upon the calls for help that we have received this year, there is a rawness and an urgency among those in need who are at a loss to afford relief for the homes falling down around them.

So many of us are either doing the work of three people, spending more time than ever clinging to the jobs we have or working “overtime” to find the job we are lacking. In this environment, scores of volunteers made the time to join with us for weeks, planning every detail that would be needed to transform these homes. Individuals and companies gifted whatever precious financial donations they could manage. Manufacturers and retailers donated building materials. I can only guess that they all took part out of a belief that homes are the centerpiece of a person’s life and, in turn, of healthy communities. After all, none of us needs to be reminded that part of the reason why this recession sent shock waves to the system is that it revolved around the very feature that brings the most stability to our lives and communities: our homes.

In Fairfield County, experts from the multi-Emmy award-winning show, “This Old House,” joined behind-the scenes colleagues from the television program magazine and website to deliver a Mother’s Day gift in the form of extensive home repairs for Grace, a single mom in Norwalk coping with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Master craftsman, Norm Abram, general contractor, Tom Silva, and plumbing and heating expert, Richard Trethewey led the charge, replacing drafty windows and filling a 30-yard dumpster with items accumulated over many years in this multi-generational home.

One county over, Ronald, a young New Haven man in his late twenties, had two things in common with Grace. For one, Ronald also is confronted with MS in addition to a debilitating car crash that further rendered him disabled. The second thing that Ronald had in common with Grace was that he applied to HomeFront. As a result, In New Haven, volunteers from St. Aedan and St. Brendan Churches replaced the dangerous floors that made it difficult for Ronald to maneuver his wheel chair in the kitchen and bathroom, replaced windows and, among other things, added fresh coats of paint.

In Hartford County, volunteers from St. Thomas the Apostle Church in West Hartford decided that Georgina had been waiting for help for far too long. Even though Georgina is an older adult on a very low income, the volunteers were impressed with the fact that she, herself, manages to volunteer, visiting the sick at a local hospital. Her home was in a state that would be difficult to imagine in the state of Connecticut. By the end of HomeFront Day, Georgina’s home had a newly replaced roof and a once non-functional kitchen has been replaced with a brand new one.

These are just a few stories of the plight of our neighbors today and the compassion that this economy has yet to render extinct. Our Board, along with my three colleagues and I wish to congratulate all of the participants who brought our program to the point of having delivered services valued at nearly $40 million to nearly 2,600 homes in need. Perhaps many of the participants, like me, grew up in decent homes and want to pass that gift on to others.

When I first heard of HomeFront, I remember thinking that I just hope a program like this remains alive in case — God forbid — I or a loved one is ever in need of this type of help. Whatever the motivation may be, as long as we can continue this momentum, bringing to life the old adage that “many hands make light work,” we may never reach the finish line, but we can make our communities kinder and stronger. Each year our program receives more than 500 requests for help. 

Information on how to refer someone who may benefit from this service or how to get involved can be found either at our toll-free number (800-887-4673) or www.homefrontprogram.org.