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May 13th, 2024

GREENVILLE, S.C. – During National Older Americans Month, Rebuild Upstate celebrates the completion of its 1,000th accessibility ramp.

Rebuild Upstate serves low-income homeowners by making repairs and accessibility improvements to create safe, livable housing in existing homes and neighborhoods in Greenville, Anderson, Pickens, and Oconee counties. Rebuild Upstate engages community volunteers to build ramps and perform other repairs.

Rebuild Upstate has helped more than 1,800 older adults in its home repair and modification program. Accessibility modifications include grab bar installation, low-step showers, hand-held shower heads, and bench seats. Rebuild Upstate fills in an important, growing need in helping low-income and cost-burdened older adults age in place.

According to the AARP, 77% of Americans want to age at home. Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) 2021 report, The State of the Nation’s Housing, reported that only 3.5 percent of the US housing stock provides all three critical accessibility features—a no-step entry, single-floor living, and extra-wide doorways and halls—that help households with reduced mobility to live safely and comfortably in their homes. JCHS further reports that In South Carolina, 24.9 (or nearly 1 in 4) of older adults in the Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin metro area are currently experiencing cost burdens.

Rebuild Upstate installs repairs and accessibility modifications at no cost to the homeowner, preserving their income for other critical needs while helping older adults age in the community.

In the past 17 years, Rebuild Upstate has been honored with numerous awards including Max Heller Neighborhood Improvement Award from the Greenville Chamber in 2019; Fred R. Sheheen Award for Excellence in Non-Profit Leadership from TogetherSC in 2018; and a three-time winner of the Best Practices Award from the Coalition for Home Repair, the national association of nonprofit home repair organizations.

If you know of a low-income older adult who needs a ramp, referrals can be made online. You can sponsor repairs for homeowners on the waiting list by making a donation today.

About Rebuild Upstate:
Rebuild Upstate is a nonprofit organization serving the Upstate of South Carolina. The nonprofit strengthens the communities by providing volunteers and materials to create a safe, healthy, sustainable home environment for disabled, low-income and elderly homeowners. The organization exclusively focuses on repairs and improving existing homes. The nonprofit is also the reigning Chamber Max Heller award recipient. Learn more at www.rebuildupstate.org.

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Ramp Gallery

Photos feature ramps installed in 2023 from sponsors and volunteers.

State Farm - Sponsor

Fuller Group - Sponsor

GTCHS Beta Club

Youth Leadership Academy

Youth Leadership Academy

Team 42

De Bruin Law Firm

Mauldin Methodist - Sponsor

Piedmont Salkehatchie - Sponsor

Leadership Greenville - Sponsor

Leadership Greenville - Sponsor

Leadership Greenville - Sponsor

BNI Masters of Success Build Day

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This post is part two in a two-part series recognizing volunteers for their service. It features awards traditionally given to community leaders and individuals for volunteerism. Read about entities, businesses, and churches here.

Golden Hammer Award

Awarded to Bob Hannah

The Golden Hammer is awarded to an outstanding individual volunteer who has volunteered their time on the build site. This individual goes above and beyond to help our operations team complete home repair projects.

Bob Hannah has been a longtime loyal Volunteer Site Leader. He’s always eager to sign up to lead groups, and he even organizes his own volunteer group a few times a year. Bob is quick on his feet to overcome any issues that may occur while he is on site. After spending the day on site with Bob, volunteers only have great things to say about him as a Site Leader.

Golden Wrench Award

Awarded to Tom Fruhwirth

The Golden Hammer is awarded to an outstanding individual volunteer who has volunteered their time on the build site. This individual goes above and beyond to help our operations team complete home repair projects.

Tom is part of the St. Anthony Handyman Club, a growing group of volunteers. We can count on Tom as a problem solver, thinking and pushing for the best solutions for homeowners’ repair needs. He is a strong collaborator and brings positivity to every build. Like all our Handyman Club members, he is a hard worker, often being the first to arrive and last to leave, even coming the following day to wrap up projects when needed. He is reliable, and our homeowners have significantly benefitted from his assistance.

Home Base Helper

Awarded to Forest Britt

The Home Base Helper Award is awarded to a single volunteer whose work at our own home, our office, was pivotal to the success of our operations.

Forest has been ready and willing to volunteer no matter the task. In 2023, he transitioned from a Handyman Club volunteer to an administrative project management volunteer, which brought him to a different side of our program. Forest was able to visit homes that we hadn’t seen yet and bring those documents and pictures back to the office. By visiting the homeowner in person, he could focus on the projects and connect with the homeowners. That insight and documentation are crucial to help the homeowner navigate the application process. Forest’s flexibility and willingness to help, no matter the task, directly reflect his personality and heart.

Founder’s Award

Awarded to Megan Finnern

The Founder’s Award is awarded to a person or entity whose contributions are pivotal and vital to the organization’s success. 

Megan’s dedication to the mission of Rebuild Upstate over the past decade (yes – a full decade of service) has been unwavering. She has passionately stepped up whenever needed and even when it was uncomfortable or uncharted territory. Megan literally helped us become who we are today (serving on our Rebranding Committee to establish Rebuild Upstate as our name). She led our Board through the first CEO transition in our history. More than anything, Megan’s passion for the people we get to serve has been felt far and wide; she has directed that passion to use her time, talents, and resources to further our mission for decades to come. It is for that passion, dedication, and steadfastness that Megan has earned our 2024 Founder’s Award.

Foundational Supporter Hall of Fame

Awarded to LMG Architects

The Foundational Supporters award recognizes individuals who use their time, talents, voice, and/or resources in an “above and beyond” and multi-year effort to advance our mission. This is Rebuild Upstate’s Hall of Fame.

LMG Architects, owned by Lura & Mark Godfrey was the first small business to join our Porch Partner Community for monthly donors. Lura serves on the Rebuild Upstate board of directors and served five years on the Greenville Advisory Council. Lura has a long history of engaging those in her professional network to our mission, bringing connections to multiple fundraising events. In addition, Lura is an event volunteer where she helps our team manage and implement community events. She finds every opportunity to share our mission, and Rebuild Upstate is better for her involvement.

Home Repair Warriors

Home Repair Warriors bring our mission to life. These volunteers may serve in the office, on-site, or as an advocate in the community. Wherever they are, their personal contributions deeply impact the entire upstate community. Earned by volunteering 50+ hours, these volunteers made substantial time contributions in 2022.

300+ Hours

• Stephan Hamel, 397 | Jesse Trout, 344

150 – 299 Hours

Doug Greenwell, 256 | Walt Laiewski, 272 | Paul Wodecki, 270 | Jay Valachovic, 265 | Tom Fruhwirth, 239 | Ron Beaudoin, 211 | Michael Mathers, 207 | John Geck, 182 | Tom Caudill, 172 | Tom Lappin, 168 | Thomas Losier, 157

100 – 149 Hours

Chris Harpe, 125 | Stacy Sargent, 114 | Tom Forrestall, 114 | Karen Hamel, 102 | Betty Beaudoin, 100

50 – 99 Hours

Donald Davis, 89 | Bob Hannah, 83 | Don Shaw, 81 | Bill Schmidt, 74 | Kenneth Sargent, 68 | Mark Hyndman, 67 | Forest Britt, 64 | Kevin Risden, 63 | John Roman, 63 | Catherine King, 60 | Alan Russell, 59 | Trenton Roper, 58 | Marty Watts, 52 | Dottie Kimbrell, 51 | Dave Catron, 51 | Tom Sherwood, 50 | Noelle Kulick, 50 | Graham Proffitt, 50

Thank you for your commitment and service.

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Truist Build Day - Nuts & Bolts Supporter

St. Andrews Episcopal - Home Repair Champion

St. Andrew's Episcopal Home Repair Champion Award Presentation

Fuller Group Build Day - Nuts & Bolts Supporter

BNI Masters of Success Build Day

BNI Masters of Success Ambassador Award Presentation

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Indirect support, such as volunteer time, combined with direct donations and reimbursement grants, totaled more than $600,000 – a historic high in our 17-year history. The commitment from volunteers and volunteering organizations comes at a time when nationwide giving is on a decline, making their impact all the more valuable. Upstate volunteers display a steadfast dedication to their neighbors through support of our home repair program.

$422,671 in Donated Volunteer Time

In 2023, 1,321 volunteers spent 13,292 hours on the build site. or through other services, equating to $422,671 in donated time to our organization. 

$82,416 in Reimbursements from the Retired Senior Volunteer Program

Each RSVP volunteer can raise up to $1,000 for Rebuild Upstate – just by showing up. In 2023, RSVP volunteers did just that. More than 80 RSVP volunteers earned Rebuild Upstate $82,416.31 in grant reimbursement funds. RSVP volunteers are 55 or older and volunteer in Anderson County.

$100,000 in Nuts & Bolts Donations

2023 marked our most successful year for Nuts & Bolts Builds. Nuts & Bolts Builds are those where volunteer teams provide volunteer time and funding towards the repair project. In total, groups from businesses, churches, and friend groups raised more than $100,000 in direct donations to pay for repair materials. Nuts & Bolts donations ranged from a few hundred dollars to full home sponsorships. Every dollar makes a difference for an Upstate neighbor.

$600,000+ Leveraged

When we add up the sponsored build day funds + the value of volunteer time + our reimbursement from the RSVP program in 2023, we see that volunteer time donated to our organization is valued at more than $600,000.

“Volunteers add major value to the work that we do,” said Jake Beaty, CEO of Rebuild Upstate. “When you’re on a build day, it’s a joyful experience for the homeowner, and volunteers make that possible. Organizations and individuals who contributed direct donations go the extra mile, and our program is better for it. We look forward to celebrating volunteers at the Because of You BBQ in April.”

Join us on Thursday, April 25th, at the Because of You BBQ, where we celebrate volunteer and supporter impact. The event coincides with National Volunteer Appreciation Week. The family-friendly event is free to attend, thanks to sponsorship from First Palmetto Bank.

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St. Andrew’s has made outstanding contributions to our organization through both volunteer service and financial support, helping us to sustain our mission, and transforming homes and lives in our shared community. 

Our staff and board of directors were pleased to present the Home Repair Champion Award to their congregation at a recent service. The Home Repair Champion Award is an honor our organization bestows upon a person or organization that embraces our mission and has contributed substantially to our work.  

St. Andrew’s has a historical practice of meeting the needs of their community. In 2018, their congregation launched a capital campaign to complete the restoration of the church. They decided to go the extra mile and tithe 10% of their capital campaign funds to a local charity. In deciding what charity should benefit, they determined affordable housing was the community’s biggest need. They honed in on what Rebuild Upstate was doing to keep people in their homes and felt it was clear that they could make a difference in that way.

In total, St. Andrew’s tithed $40k of capital campaign funds to Rebuild Upstate, enabling us to complete repairs critical to the health and safety of many low-income neighbors. Beyond this generosity, volunteers from the church have swung hammers and demo’ed old decks on multiple occasions, again going the extra mile to ensure our neighbors are safely housed. Since 2018, their parishioners have volunteered more than 250 hours for neighbors in the Greenville community.

“The parishioners at St. Andrew’s take “Love thy neighbor” to a new level, whether it’s clothing, feeding, or housing people in need,” said Rosey Davis, Community Engagement Director. “We are proud to call them our Home Repair Champions this year, and even more proud to have their longstanding support of our home repair program.”

We are grateful for every member of St. Andrew’s who voted to support our organization during a critical growth period and showed up consistently on-site, recruiting volunteers and advocating for our mission all the way.

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