Mend-A-House helps Manassas resident

By Bennie Scarton Jr.

Published: August 29, 2008

"Neighbors working with neighbors." Project Mend-A-House, Manassas, has been translating this slogan into the community impact for years.

Rarely, however, has this been as important as recently for client Alvira Hiles of Manassas.

Thanks to her new found friends at Mend-A-House and Antioch Church of Christ in Manassas, Hiles has seen the impact this organization makes when it works together with its community partners.

On Saturday, members of the church will help Hiles host a yard sale at her home, 7515 Albemarle Drive, Manassas from 7 a.m. to 12 noon.

Hiles is a senior widow living on a small fixed income in a modest home who struggles these days just to walk. Fortunately, some of her neighbors have helped her out with some daily living tasks such as grocery shop-ping.

However, a dilapidated garage with a leaking roof, rotting fascia boards and peeling paint was a job beyond their means. So Hiles sought out another "neighbor' Mend-A-House for help.

At the same time, Pastor and leader of the Community Needs Team at the church, Jon Ulm, was in search of a com-munity service project. It was arranged that Mend-A-House would provide the material and Jon's church would provide the volunteer workforce to fix the garage. Hiles neighbor arranged to have a Fredericksburg roofer, Calvin Ruby, replace all the shingles on the garage roof free.

During the course of two weekends, 15 volunteers from Mend-A-House's core volunteer Brandon Hall con-verged on the garage. Out went the rotten boards, dilapidated siding and worn shingles. In came new vinyl siding, overhang, security light and reshingled roof. Nine teenagers from the church painted her garage, top-to-bottom, completing the much-needed overhaul.

The story doesn't end here as the church's team has helped to restore order to Hiles life inside her house as well. One of her deceased sons left behind an extraordinary book collection—about 2,000 books. Working with Prosperos Bookstore in Manassas, the team has placed the books.

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