Helpful Hammering
Just Compassion’s gorgeous new Access Center was surrounded in the back by a jungle of blackberries. As a part of our contribution to the project, Home Building Foundation’s Chris McDowell proposed removing the invasive plants, then building a new cedar fence to compliment the new structure.
HBF recruited pre-apprenticeship trainees from Constructing Hope to come help clear the site and to put up the fence. As it is with most training programs, some students are very green, and some have a wide range of construction skills. McDowell made sure each trainee cycled through the many steps needed to accomplish the task to make sure everyone walked away with better skills.
The students worked without complaint to hack away at the blackberries, creating an enormous pile of debris. Others carefully placed fence posts under the watchful eye of McDowell, who was quick to make corrections before trainees hammered in the fence panels.
Just Compassion’s Board Member Rob Watson helped alongside the Constructing Hope teaching team to ensure a quality job. Watson complimented the quality of the cedar fence, and says the organization is grateful for the tremendous savings it will bring to the project. Measuring at more than 350 linear feet, the fence would have been costly. Like most HBF projects, volunteer labor and donations or discounted materials from the residential building industry means our projects save between 30-70% over typical retail costs.
Constructing Hope’s Irving Brown tells us students are eager to come out into the field to work on a meaningful project, and complimented this cohort for how focused they all stayed while on the job. McDowell made sure everyone has something to do by having some of the students build picnic tables that we will donate to shelters.
HBF started supporting Constructing Hope five years ago as an outgrowth of a HomeAid America grant from Bank of America. Since that time, HBF has provided Constructing Hope a variety of services. For example, the Foundation provided stipends during the pandemic for wi-fi hot spots. We’ve also invited students to career fairs, and donated to tools to the Constructing Hope classroom.
HBF thanks the students by providing lunch, giving us a chance to chat with them about their futures. Trainees told us they loved working on the project, and those who were considering a career as a carpentry say it helped reinforce their decision. When they graduate, HBF will provide each with a certificate they can use while job hunting, reflecting the nearly 40 hours of on-the -job training they earned by helping HBF with a project.