Renovating with Heart

Time passed. Servis retired 20 years ago, divorced 10 years ago and in the intervening years has seen her home slowly deteriorate as the cost of making repairs began to exceed her fixed income.

Enter a group of dedicated volunteers-among them a professional football player, a homebuilding company, a realtor, an attorney and a government employee-who made it their business to see that Servis had a home in which she could be comfortable.

They are part of Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay, a local chapter of a national organization that rehabilitates houses for the elderly and those on fixed incomes. And they gathered, as they do each April on National Rebuild Day, to rehabilitate eight houses, Servis's among them.

"They just made my whole kitchen brand-new," says Servis, an articulate, gracious ex-typewriting teacher at what used to be the Business School of Tampa.

Servis' rehabbed kitchen now boasts a new refrigerator and a new stove as well as a microwave oven and a dishwasher. Volunteers even installed a new kitchen floor. In addition, two bedrooms were repainted as part of the project.

"I just couldn't thank them enough," Servis says. "I sure couldn't do that myself at this time."

Cheryl Harris, administrator for Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay and executive director of the Remodeling Contractors Association, was happy to oblige.

"When you do work for somebody like Mrs. Servis, it's a double blessing," says Harris.

Norma Cohen, president of Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay and broker/owner of Avalar Realty of Tampa Bay, says the organization "wants to do even more."

Cohen is one of those on-the-go executives who has to take a reporter's call while driving from one meeting to the next.

A few days later, she was scheduled to head to a district confab of Rebuilding Together affiliates to pick up ideas on how to incorporate roof repairs into the Tampa group's repertoire.

"I always wanted to give back to the community," says Cohen. "You can fish and golf, but nothing gives you the kind of appreciation you can get when you help someone."

Rebuilding Together's mission is to "preserve and revitalize houses and communities, assuring that low-income homeowners, from the elderly and disabled to families with children, live in warmth, safety and independence."

This translates to doing home repairs at no charge for those who can't otherwise afford them. Repairs often include home modifications, plumbing and electrical repairs.

The national organization, based in Washington, D.C., began in 1988 as a loose confederation of 13 separate groups. Today, there are 255 affiliates in more than 955 towns and cities.

The Tampa affiliate was founded six years ago, and the board includes realtors, attorneys, building professionals and even one local celebrity-Tampa Bay Buccaneer Dewayne White.

Cohen says the local focus is mostly on kitchen renovation, painting, flooring and yard work. Beneficiaries must submit applications to demonstrate need and to prove that they've owned their homes for at least two years.

Harris notes that each year the organization receives more applications that it has funds to accommodate. In 2006, for example, roughly 100 applications were received and eight homes were repaired.

So the board looks at each case individually, judging them by the severity of need and taking into account special circumstances, such as whether the applicants are single parents or disabled.

Once homeowners have been selected, sponsors are found to assemble teams of volunteers. A group of anywhere from 10 to 30 people can complete most jobs in one day, but several days of preparation may be necessary.

Corporate sponsorships and donations help with the cost of materials, appliances and professional services for which donors cannot be found. Harris says the organization does not do "extreme makeovers." Instead, it concentrates on more modest repairs directly related to health and safety.

This year's Rebuild Day was the first for Elvin Martinez, a community relations administrator for the Office of the State Attorney. Martinez organized a team of 15 volunteers from his office to make repairs to the home of a former school bus driver who had been injured in an accident and was disabled.

"The home needed some TLC," says Martinez, whose team replaced a broken hot water heater and a corroded pipe outside among many other improvements.

"We filled two dumpsters with debris," adds Martinez. "I've participated in Paint Your Heart Out Tampa and in Hillsborough River cleanups, but this was the most rewarding effort. It was hard to talk to the homeowner because she would just cry. She kept hugging everyone. She didn't want us to leave."

Last year, a team from David Weekley Homes rehabbed the Tampa home of Willie and Yolanda Martin, an elderly couple suffering from health problems. A team of 20 from the homebuilding company, assisted by its suppliers, donated time, labor and materials. The focus of the project was primarily on the kitchen.

Another major supporter of Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay is World Savings Bank, which is involved in housing-related charities throughout the country and contributes annually to the local organization.

"We're a major player in the home lending business," says Rosemary Duffy, the bank's division operations coordinator based in St. Petersburg. "Helping people own a home, or be able to stay in a home, is our core business. We've been very successful, so we wanted to give back."

The impact of Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay's work goes far beyond simply cleaning up homes, says Dan Neall, another board member and office manager at Bayshore Real Estate.

"It gives the neighborhood a fresh feel," notes Neall. "Not only does [a renovation] boost an individual property, it boosts the neighbors, too. It's a catalyst to get other things going."

"It was so heartwarming to see the gratitude," says Martinez. "The lasting impression on the young child, that people are willing to help and not expect anything in return, it gives me chills to think about it. It's refreshing to know that so many people are working to do the right thing."

For more information about the organization, to donate money or to volunteer, visit www.rebuildingtogethertampabay.org or contact Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay at (813) 878-9000.