Group repairs homes for those in need in Springfield

At SHS, desks have been swapped out for inflatable air mattresses, cots, and even an inflatable couch as WorkCampNE, a faith-based summer program, sets up camp throughout the classrooms, cafeteria, and auditorium. It’s all part of an effort to bring free home repairs to communities with financial need.

www.eagletimes.com    

2017-07-14 / Front Page Group repairs homes for those in need in Springfield By KELSEY CHRISTENSEN kchristensen@eagletimes.com Kaley Ryan-Wheaton (left) and Molly Duffy (right) repaint a porch in Springfield as part of WorkCampNE, a group that connects homeowners in need with free home repairs on Thursday. — KELSEY CHRISTENSENKaley Ryan-Wheaton (left) and Molly Duffy (right) repaint a porch in Springfield as part of WorkCampNE, a group that connects homeowners in need with free home repairs on Thursday. — KELSEY CHRISTENSENSPRINGFIELD, Vt. — School’s out for the summer, but the Springfield High School hallways have been flooded with teens of a different sort the past two weeks. At SHS, desks have been swapped out for inflatable air mattresses, cots, and even an inflatable couch as WorkCampNE, a faith-based summer program, sets up camp throughout the classrooms, cafeteria, and auditorium. It’s all part of an effort to bring free home repairs to communities with financial need. WorkCampNE was originally chartered in 1989 by a group of Tennessee teens, according to the director, Marcia Therrien, but the organization was incorporated as a nonprofit in 2003. Since then, WorkCampNE say they have boasted 4,300 volunteers, served 535 families, provided $390,000 in materials, and generated an economic impact of $1.9 million. In Springfield, WorkCampNE will work on a total of 20 area homes completely free of charge. The labor is provided for free by middle school- to college-aged students, while the materials are provided in combination by donation and tuition costs. DeWalt, in particular, has been a significant source of donated materials to WorkCampNE. WorkCampNE usually relies on demographic analysis to determine areas of need for home repairs, but Springfield was an interesting case. “It was the first time a town reached out to us,” Therrien said. Springfield Town Manager Tom Yennerell contacted Therrien about the possibility of hosting WorkCampNE, while school district Superintendent Zack McLaughlin agreed to host the campers at the high school. “If it weren’t for SEVCA [Southeastern Vermont Community Action], we wouldn’t have even known about WorkCampNE,” Yennerell said. Along with the school’s participation with hosting the campers, Yennerell called the effort a three-way partnership. “These organizations made it easy for this to happen.” Some schools charge WorkCampNE a fee to occupy the building, but Springfield is hosting the campers for free. “Our number one focus is [finding] a high school or middle school that will house us,” Therrien said. “Springfield has been great to us. Tom [Yennerell] has been wonderful, the school has been phenomenal, the custodial staff has been great. It’s been a great partnership.” To identify the homes that WorkCampNE would rehabilitate, the organization worked closely with SEVCA. Their focus when choosing the recipients of the free home repairs, is finding the lowest income families, families that require greater handicap access or amenities in their home, and folks that have had health issues that have prevented them from keeping up with the maintenance of their home. Therrien says the families they serve encompass a wide spectrum. Any type of family, from young single parents, to elderly populations, to families where an illness may have inhibited housing maintenance may receive home repairs through the organization. The types of repairs the organization tackles are just as diverse. Campers may do something as simple as a fresh paint job, or something as complicated as roofing, or replacing basement insulation. The only types of repair off the proverbial table is electrical and plumbing work. “The impact is significant,” Yennerell said. “For individuals that are getting these free services, these repairs probably wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for WorkCamp being there.” Yennerell hopes that in a few years, WorkCampNE will return to the community. WorkCampNE began their work in Springfield last week, and will leave Springfield on Friday, July 14 to begin working in Alstead, New Hampshire. Last week, there were 120 people on campus and this week there’s been 50. Students come from all over the country to participate in WorkCampNE, and this year, there are even two exchange students from Spain participating. “It really brings me pure joy helping others,” said Molly Duffy, a camper with WorkCampNE from Londonderry, New Hampshire. This is Duffy’s fourth year working in the program. “It’s really awe-inspiring.” On Thursday, WorkCampNE held a dinner in the SHS cafeteria to commune with the residents they served, and thank them for allowing WorkCampNE to take to their homes. “It’s a risk to let teens come in and do work,” said Therrien. The WorkCampNE campers have also been writing letters to the residents throughout the week to be sent out when they leave. “This is an amazing organization that just has a love for helping people,” said Heather Fox, an adult volunteer. “They’re super organized, wonderful people with a kind heart.”