Rebuilding Together revitalizes neighborhoods by improving blighted homes.

The New Monterey house was proudly handcrafted out of sturdy redwood timbers by Monterey Presidio blacksmiths. Decades later the roof was leaking, windows were broken, the yard was a jungle – a dilapidated eyesore to passersby on Prescott Avenue. Hidden from view was the elderly woman living inside, too overwhelmed and financially strapped to fix what was broken, and too embarrassed to step outside and face her neighbors.

Isaac Sharp remembers clearly the spring day more than a decade ago he and other volunteers with Rebuilding Together showed up to patch the roof, replace the windows, paint the walls, replumb the house and tame the overgrown yard. Soon curious neighbors emerged and picked up paintbrushes, tools and rakes. A roofing contractor on a job in the neighborhood happened to drive by; he stopped and offered to haul away debris.

“We basically transformed a blighted home,” Sharp says. “She was a shut-in because she was embarrassed; rebuilding the home transformed her life.”

When Sharp drives by today, he’s proud to see it remains as well-maintained as when Rebuilding Together volunteers left. The roofing contractor who pitched in is someone who still helps out.

“There are a lot of little cool stories like that,” says Sharp, president of the nonprofit’s board. He describes Rebuilding Together as “a tool-belt-wearing, hammer-swinging group of volunteers who try to do our part to help folks in need.”

The Monterey/Salinas chapter of Rebuilding Together was launched in 1995, the same year as the national group, then known as Christmas in April. Since then, the group has rehabilitated more than 300 homes and 25 nonprofit facilities in the Monterey Bay region, deploying the efforts of more than 4,000 volunteers. Sharp estimates the market value of the group’s work is around $2 million.

Each fall the board vets requests for projects volunteers will take on in spring. They get tips on potential projects from all sorts of sources, including from city officials, neighbors, churches and homeowners. Volunteers have made improvements on nonprofit facilities, like Dorothy’s Kitchen in Salinas.

The local chapter receives some funding from local cities to recoup some costs of rehabilitating homes, but relies heavily on donations from businesses and the community. Sharp says because it is led by volunteers, more than 90 percent of all donations go directly to aid the homeowners, rather than administrative overhead. The group is hoping to fund additional repairs next spring with funding from Monterey County Gives!