Friday, June 12, 2009
Paint, patch and pitch in
Send us your giving news Your Community, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke, VA 24010 or e-mail yourcommunity@roanoke.com.A volunteer group in Old Southwest beautifies the home of an elderly neighbor.
Photos courtesy of Old Southwest Inc.
A volunteer points out progress on Thelma Carner's home (below). About 50 volunteers showed up at the Old Southwest home on May 30 to paint, do minor repairs and tackle landscaping projects.
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Thelma Carner had never won anything in her life. When she got an e-mail from her neighborhood organization, Old Southwest Inc., she felt better than the people featured on home makeover TV shows.
"I feel as if I hit the jackpot," Carner said.
She was nominated by her neighbors to have her house's exterior fixed up by volunteers. The event, "Neighbors Helping Neighbors," chooses an Old Southwest homeowner every year and offers volunteers and materials to paint, do basic repairs and improve the landscaping.
"It truly is an example of what living in a neighborhood is all about," said Tim Taylor, special events chairman for the organization. "We love our neighborhood, and we pride ourselves in being good stewards of the property that we have."
About 50 Old Southwest residents showed up on May 30 and worked on Carner's home. They painted her house beige, with deep red for the trim and olive green accents. A star was placed on the front of the house, and lighting around her plants.
Volunteers painted and put new cushions on Carner's furniture. Civil Air Patrol cadets also volunteered and earned credit hours toward a community service award.
Costs for the service project, which is three years old, are covered by sponsors and the money raised through Old Southwest's annual holiday parlor tour.
"My neighbors are lovely people," Carner said. "I wish I was able to do things for them."
Taylor said beneficiaries of the volunteer project must live in Old Southwest, own their homes and be in physical and financial need.
But Carner's daughter Judy Gibson said it was her mother's attitude that made her neighbors pick her.
"My mother was always doing nice things for the neighbors," Gibson said. "She is one of the most caring, sincere people."
Gibson and her husband, Kirk, were among the volunteers who helped fix up the house. Because they are grateful for what the neighbors did for Carner, Gibson said, they will help fix other houses in the neighborhood from now on.
"In Old Southwest, they are really united, they seem to really care about each other," she said.
Two weeks after the project, Gibson still thinks what happened is as unreal as a TV show.
"I can't get over it that people would take their time to do this," Gibson said. "This was really amazing."
Carner, who will be 83 in September, has lived on Janette Avenue for 33 years. Half of her 61-year marriage was spent at the home. Her husband, Richard Carner, died about two years ago.
"We both loved our neighbors, but so many have passed away and moved from this location," Carner said.
"There is a real sense of community," Taylor said. "We hope every neighborhood resident in the city enjoys living where they do as much as we enjoy living here in Old Southwest."
