This week volunteers from Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento came together to begin repairs for a local West Sacramento Veteran in need.
Charles McDonnell enlisted in the Navy towards the end of the Korean War and served our country from 1953 to 1956 as an aerial photographer. During his assignment he was awarded the National Defense Service Ribbon. After honorable discharge, Charles worked as a professional in the construction industry until a back injury resulted in a permanent disability. He and his wife have been living in a home with a leaky roof and significant exterior dry rot and mold, but little hope to make the needed repairs on their fixed income.
Unable to afford to replace their roof on their fixed incomes, Charles and his wife had rain coming into their home. Pictured here, a volunteer from Intel helping on day 1 of repairs.
This project was made possible through financial support from Bank of the West, Bank of America, Our Faith Lutheran Church, The Air Warrior Courage Foundation, and Thrivent Financial. Volunteers from Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento will be helping repair the roof and exterior of Charles’s home over the next few weeks and plan to complete the repairs by mid-March.
Volunteers from NextGen helping kick-off the repairs on the roof this week
Charles and his wife donated 8 hours of “sweat equity” to participate in Habitat’s Critical Repairs program and will pay back a small portion of the full cost of repairs over a 5-year, 0% interest payment program. They are grateful to partner with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento to replace their roof and make sure their home is a healthy, safe, water-tight place for them to age in place.
Veteran Charles McDonnell stands outside his West Sacramento home on day 1 of repairs.
Says Habitat Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento CEO, Leah Miller, “There are far too many vulnerable Veterans and seniors in our community who are living on fixed incomes and in conditions like this and even worse. If their roofs don’t get repaired, they run the risk of being coded out and, because many of them may not have another place to go, becoming homeless – which is a pretty scary thing when you’re a senior citizen. We want to be able to help Veterans and seniors to stay in their homes and age in place with dignity.”
In addition to their new home building program, Habitat for Humanity plans to complete at least 20 repair projects in Sacramento and Yolo County – 10 of which will be specifically for local Veterans.
The application period for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento’s Home Repairs and Home Ownership programs is currently open. Interested applicants should visit www.HabitatGreaterSac.org for more information on qualifications and how to apply.
Interested in helping support Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento’s Veteran’s Repair Program? Contact Laine Himmelmann at LHimmelmann@HabitatGreaterSac.org or (916) 440-1215 ext. 1108
