(Tampa – January 19, 2009)  On January 30, 1,500 volunteers from more than fifty corporations and organizations will bring about needed repairs to 20 homes in Historic Old West Tampa.  The event will focus on repairing these homes, making them safer, healthier, and more energy efficient.  Home repairs, all free to the homeowners, are well underway in several of the homes ranging from exterior landscaping to extensive structural repairs. 

One of these homes however is an Extreme Rebuild.

Mrs. Nieves, age 66, is a disabled widow who is raising four grandchildren.  Mrs. Nieves is doing her best to raise and feed the boys on a fixed income and is unable to afford desperately needed repairs to her home.

“When we met Mrs. Nieves, did not have hot water and only two electrical sockets worked in the home.  The floor was covered with extension cords running to those two outlets.  Cold nights were bitter for this family, as there were large gaps in the doorframes and windows.  The kitchen sink was also not connected to the sewer system, so raw garbage and dishwater were spilling onto the adjacent vacant lot,” stated Jose Garcia, Executive Director of Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay.

Enter First Florida, one of the state’s leading housing contractors.  Dana Teeter of First Florida came to Kickoff to Rebuild eager and ready to take on a project.  Clearly one to love a challenge, Dana requested a large project.  He immediately made contact with Mrs. Nieves and got to know the family.  Dana submitted a scope of work that including extensive repairs to the home with the goal of giving this elderly widow a safer and more comfortable home. 

Shortly thereafter Dana opted to scrap that scope and decided it would be better to demolish the structure and build Ms. Nieves a brand new home due to the severity of repairs needed.  Sensitive to Mrs. Nieves needs and feelings, Dana rebuilt the home to be a replica of Ms. Nieves old home right down to the special niche where she keeps a candle lit to her deceased husband Ismael.  Thanks to the team assembled by Dana Teeter and First Florida, Ms. Nieves and her grandchildren will have a safer, healthier and more energy efficient home that will last them for generations to come.

For more information about Kickoff to Rebuild or interview persons named in this press release, please contact Olga Gonzalez at 813-842-4306 or via email at ogonzalez@rttb.org.

REBUILDING TOGETHER TAMPA BAY
Rebuilding Together, the nation's leading non-profit organization preserving affordable homeownership, will celebrate the 14th Annual Kickoff to Rebuild, an NFL-sanctioned event for Super Bowl, on January 30, 2009.  This block party project will be a day of rehabilitation and renewal for local homeowners who do not have the means or ability to make the repairs themselves.   

Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay is a nonprofit organization, which provides home repair services to low-income families, the elderly, military veterans and their families, and persons with disabilities in the Tampa Bay Area.  The focus of Rebuilding Together’s work is to make homes safer, healthier and more energy efficient for their owners.  Rebuilding Together provides an array of home rehabilitation services including emergency services, home repairs, home improvements, weatherproofing and barrier removal.  For more information, please visit Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay at www.rttb.org.