Last weekend, over 30 volunteers from La Sierra Outreach, Mujeres Unidas student club at UCR, and other members of the community helped a family repaint their home in Corona. With so many volunteers helping on a single home, they needed a lot of supplies. The volunteers took initiative by organizing all of the materials needed for that day’s project: paint, paintbrushes, rollers, tarps, ladders, and painter’s tape. Teams of volunteers helped unload supplies and were then given a short safety briefing. Afterwards, the volunteers lined up single file, received their supplies, and began to paint the outside of the home. Within a few short hours, the home looked unrecognizable. Without the physical ability to restore the exterior of their home, the homeowners counted on our volunteers’ help.
Throughout the day the homeowners stepped outside to see the progress on their home. Each time they came out to watch, they seemed more excited with how their home was being improved with every brush stroke. Caesar, a volunteer from La Sierra Outreach, was incredibly happy serve his community. As the end of the project grew closer, Caesar said “This is my first time doing something like this. Me and all of my friends were so happy to help out the homeowners and have fun doing it. This is the best way to spend Saturday mornings!”
The volunteers worked until they ran out of paint! Not only did they nearly cover the entire house with a fresh coat, but they also went above and beyond to ensure that even the hardest to reach places were covered. Their hard work did not go unnoticed. When the homeowners stepped outside after the project was finished, they could not believe their eyes! They eagerly thanked the volunteers and Habitat for Humanity Riverside for giving their time and energy to make this possible. In one afternoon their home had been transformed. The homeowners and the volunteers then huddled together for group pictures. The volunteers were proud of their work, and the homeowners were proud of them as well.
