About 130 volunteers worked Sept. 8 to help make 10 Lincoln County homes warm, safe and dry this winter.
The efforts were coordinated by Darin and Serafina Carlucci of Bristol for the tenth annual Community Cares Day, on behalf of the Community Home Improvement Project Inc.
Most of the volunteers met at the Second Congregational Church in Newcastle first thing Saturday morning. Some volunteers in the Whitefield area went straight to their job site, said Darin Carlucci.
Many area churches were involved, said Carlucci, helping donate food to help fuel the teams of workers.
Each job site had both a lead carpenter to guide the projects, and a crew leader to ensure safety and help coordinate.
CHIP Inc. was founded in Bristol 28 years ago by the late Ruth Ives of Pemaquid. Ruth Ives passed away in 2006.
Ruth’s widower, Rev. Bobby Ives, spent the day as the lead carpenter at the home of Steve Rackliff and Ethel Crockett in Waldoboro, where at least nine volunteers pitched in throughout the day.
“This is how community helps community, and makes good neighbors,” Ives said
The volunteers at the Rackliff-Crockett home were busy working on several projects throughout the day, including replacing two sets of doorsteps, re-siding a portion of the home, and then replacing the floor and several joists in the kitchen that were damaged by a leaking water filter.
Because of the water damage, Crockett had actually fallen through the floor on five separate occasions.
Crockett said her daughter called 2-1-1 for the couple because they weren’t sure where to turn for help.
The couple were extremely grateful for both the help of the volunteers and the materials CHIP Inc. provided.
“All I can say is a big thank you, we really appreciate this. We really needed the work done and didn’t know where to turn,” said Crockett.
“Thank you is not enough to say,” said Rackliff. “There’s no way we could have done this without the help. CHIP is one of the better organizations I’ve come across.”
Rackliff worked side by side with the volunteers during the day and plans to complete any unfinished projects, himself using the materials CHIP will leave with the couple.
CHIP Inc. helps complete smaller projects throughout the year as well, said Carlucci. Using donated funds, CHIP Inc. will utilize a number of area carpenters who work at a reduced rate to perform repairs such as replacing a window and other similarly sized projects.
There aren’t any eligibility criteria, said Carlucci. If a project meets their goals of keeping their neighbors “warm, safe, and dry” then CHIP Inc. volunteers will likely take on the project.
CHIP Inc. will usually save larger projects for the next Community Cares Day when more volunteers will be on hand, said Carlucci.
Ives said CHIP Inc. also has some second-hand furniture and appliances available for people who may need it.
“Don’t throw anything on the dump that has life in it,” he said, so that people in need could make use of the items.
For more information on CHIP Inc. and to find out how to make a donation or volunteer, visit their web page www.chipinc.org.