It was a day to remember for Catalina at the Mission Village park in Riverside. She had recently run into some medical issues, and some parts of the outside of her home had fallen into disrepair. With a low fixed income and medical bills coming in, she, her daughter, and the park manager decided to reach out to A Brush With Kindness (ABWK) for help. Some of the siding needed to be replaced, the stairs needed to be repaired, and the home needed a new coat of paint. The paint colors were decided on, the project was approved — we just needed a set of volunteers. We were in luck! Darcey from Levi’s rounded up a wonderful group and the project date was set.
For the Levi’s volunteer group, the day started early at Mission Village. Habitat for Humanity Riverside’s A Brush with Kindness project coordinator, Dave, and our AmeriCorps Community Outreach member, Azhar, were both in attendance to lead the day’s volunteer efforts. As the project began, ladders, paint buckets, rollers, and tarps were unloaded from the A Brush with Kindness truck and the team quickly set to work. Tarps were laid down, the house’s awning was adjusted, paint was poured, and brushes were dipped. The much-needed painting was off to a great start. Little by little, brush stroke by brush stroke, the sides of the house began to look new again. Detailers painted the areas around windows and doors, helping the paint reach into all the cracks and crevices. Others on the team stood on ladders with rollers in-hand, putting down smooth, thick coats of paint on the sides of the home. Still others were in charge of painting the delicate pieces of the garden awning.
Everywhere I looked, small groups of volunteers were set on their tasks, talking and laughing and genuinely enjoying their time. I, too, picked up a brush for detailing and a paint-soaked roller to put a second coat of paint on the sides of the home. As I mingled with the Levi’s volunteers, I came to get a feel for their wonderful team dynamic and found myself hoping to be at another A Brush With Kindness project with them in the future. For the entire day, the crew was extremely energetic and set on working for the cause.
I (Hazen) joined with Habitat for Humanity as a volunteer just a few days before the Levi’s team came to help Catalina. This was my first time doing A Brush With Kindness, a well-established community outreach service. I am glad to have had my first day be with this crew, one so passionate about the work that needed to be done. Levi’s has joined in on many previous ABWK endeavors and has a great history and future with Habitat for Humanity of Riverside. I enjoyed getting to meet with Darcey and other volunteers like Thomas G., Tim M., and Ivan V. I liked painting with them so much that I now officially have a painting outfit (in other words, my shirt, pants, and boots have a fresh coat of paint of their own). I may or may not have gotten overly enthusiastic with the detail brush.
As the day’s activities wound down, Levi’s members stayed until the very end to help cart off bags of trash, reload the truck, and pick up any extra tarps. Catalina came out to look at out wonderful paint job. She let us know that she liked it very much.
Thank you Levi’s for another wonderful A Brush With Kindness day. All of you did a marvelous job!
