Rebuilding more than a house
Longtime city resident gets a 'Rebuilding Together' makeover

Ricardo Kaulessar
Hudson Reporter
04/13/2008

HAPPY RECIPIENT ? Jersey City resident Lois Garvin saw parts of her Wilkinson Avenue home being rebuilt by the volunteers of Rebuilding Together: Jersey City.
Lois Garvin sat in the kitchen of her Wilkinson Avenue home looking at the strangers that invaded her humble abode on a Saturday afternoon.

Some were painting the walls of her living room, while others placed sheetrock and fixed the stairway at the back of her house.

Still others were erecting a new wooden fence to replace the old chain-link one that has seen better days.

"What they did for me, I don't know how to repay them," Garvin said. "There is no way to repay for all this work."

Garvin was the recipient of the goodwill work of volunteers on March 29, part of a nationwide effort led by "Rebuilding Together."

Rebuilding Together was incorporated in 1988 (originally known as "Christmas in April") and is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with affiliates in more than 865 cities in all 50 states.

The Jersey City chapter, called "Rebuilding Together: Jersey City," has been in existence since 1991 and is currently chaired by co-presidents Rose Wagner of the Jersey City Department of Housing, Economic Development and Commerce, and Joan Kowalski Necklen.

This year, 500 skilled and unskilled volunteers took time out of their Saturday to refurbish 10 Jersey City homes and six community facilities.

The sites chosen for the work are from applications from home and building owners submitted to the Rebuilding Together: Jersey City office every year.

The sites that show the most need are considered by the organization's board. Most of the recipients have been located in the poorer sections of Jersey City such as Greenville and Bergen-Lafayette.

Fire destroyed structure

In 2001, a fire destroyed much of Garvin's house. She says she then became the victim of a contractor who took a substantial amount of money from her while making very few repairs.

Garvin has depended on her sister, Joan, and other family members to help fix up the house. She would like to be more proactive, but has been hindered by a back injury that led to a long leave of absence on disability from her U.S. Postal Service job.

On Saturday, members of Jersey City's Ferris High School Robotics Team, volunteers from local businesses, and union members worked side by side to give her a very early Christmas gift.

Ferris High junior student Noel Castellanos said he was happy provide a gift to Garvin.

"Building and constructing around here and giving back is what it's all about," Castellanos said. "You not only give, but you get in return."

For more information regarding the national Rebuilding Together program, please visit www.rebuildingtogether.org. For information on Rebuilding Together: Jersey City, call (201) 222-2636.

Comments on this story can be sent to rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com