People Working Cooperatively
People Working Cooperatively Oscar Gala Gave Family Dignity
Louise wasn’t asking for luxury, a gift, or even charity. She’s was looking for dignity. Dignity for her brother Jerry who suffered neglect and abuse at the hands of his caregivers.
Support of the PWC 2012 Oscar Night brought Jerry that dignity and the comfort of home he very much needed.
Louise, 57 and Jerry, 66, are siblings born in Moultrie, GA. They grew up in a hard scrabble life picking cotton in a rural community without many luxuries. Jerry was born with Cerebral Palsy and profound learning disabilities. Their mother worked 
hard teaching Jerry to be as independent as possible. Their father had been killed when they were young, and the family worked hard to make ends meet.
At best, their daily life was challenging. But what little they did have was violently shattered the day their mother was shot and killed – in front of the children.
“It’s something that stays with you forever,” says Louise, with tears in her eyes. “Our mother loved us and did everything she could for us and she was taken away in a horrible violent death. We saw it, we saw everything, and it just never leaves you.”
Jerry was sent to live at an adult group home in Florida. Louise and Gina made their way to Cincinnati, where other relatives were living.
As the years passed, all seemed to be well with Jerry’s care until one day when an uncle made a surprise visit to Jerry’s group home. He was shocked with what he found. Jerry was malnourished and had suffered horrible physical abuse. When Louise received the phone call, she knew the decision had already been made – Jerry would come to live with her and her friend Marietta.
But the Bond Hill home wasn’t ideal for a person with disabilities. Jerry can’t walk, so Louise had to carry him up and down the steps to use the toilet or for a bath. Louise has had had two knee replacements; Marietta has bone spurs and nerve pain in her back. They worried about dropping him.
“We didn’t want to hurt him – or us,” said Louise.
What the family needed to care for Jerry was a basement bathroom and shower. It was a difficult, expensive job due to the plumbing which was dug up from the basement floor. Also, the door where Jerry accesses the basement and his chair lift was 
widened and made more accessible. The size of the job was beyond the scope of what People Working Cooperatively typically performs.
But support from PWC’s Oscar Gala helped Jerry receive the care he needed. He now has a beautiful state of the art bathroom in his basement, and an expanded doorway to help him get in the house.
You can support PWC’s Oscar Experience: Cincinnati by buying event tickets or raffle tickets to win $5,000 at www.pwchomerepairs.org or calling 513-351-7921.
People Working Cooperatively & Home Depot Repair Homes For Veterans
There are heroes all around us. Willa is one of them. At 80, she can look back at her life with great pride. In 1951, Willa was one of the few trailblazing African American women to enter the military and she valiantly served three tours of duty as a medic both stateside and abroad in the Women’s Army Corps.
Passing by her house – the place that has been the center of her life since returning to civilian living – one would never know what greatness resided within. Today, like so many other military veterans, she has permanent health and mobility issues….and a home in need of repair.
People Working Cooperatively (PWC) and The Home Depot Foundation have joined forces to make an impact. Yesterday, after an announcement of a $155,000 donation by Home Depot to PWC, over 225 local store associates set off to repair and renovate the homes of 15 local veterans – including Willa – who wouldn’t be able to afford those expenses on their own.
For The Home Depot Foundation, this is part of its second annual ‘Celebration of Service Campaign’ where employees across the country repair 100 homes. For PWC, the Campaign marks a new attention focus on the needs of veterans.
“When I joined PWC as an employee, I looked at our waiting list for mobility modifications. There were 58 veterans on the list. I wanted to come up with funding to remove their names,” said Ron Heinlein, a former Home Depot district manager who became PWC’s director of corporate and community partnerships.
And, if you know Ron, the way I do, you know he can get it done. The $155,000 check from Home Depot will cover the renovation costs for those 58 names but the list just keeps growing.
So, with a huge kick-off planned, PWC will have a new ‘Ramp It Up For Veterans Campaign’ running September 11 through Veteran’s Day (November 11), 2012. Donors will be able to text a number and contribute $10 toward PWC’s important work.
If you would like to donate it advance, please visit the PWC website at this link.
People Working Cooperatively Helping People With Disabilities
Each year through People Working Cooperatively, thousands of volunteers working in tandem with professionally trained staff reach out to homeowners without the financial means to maintain their home, and thus, maintain their independence. The organization strengthens communities by providing professional, critical home repairs, weatherization, modification and other repair services that residents would not be able to afford on their own. PWC’s Modifications for Mobility Program specifically offers costly accessibility adaptations to homes for people with disabilities.
Two friends, A Common Bond
PWC volunteer Steve Crow’s battle with cancer resulted in a prosthetic leg and a calling to help his fellow neighbors. That calling was put into action when Steve met a man with whom he shared a common bond. David lost his leg to diabetes two years ago. Using a wheelchair in a house that wasn’t built for someone with a mobility disability prohibited David from being able to come and go easily.
Steve volunteered with the Kentucky United Methodist Church to build a ramp for David.
“I was so depressed, just so upset. I couldn’t go anywhere,” David told PWC. “It has literally been two years since I went outside the house. You can’t imagine what it is like.”
The ramp gave David a new lease on life. “Just to go outside again and smell the fresh air and hear the birds. It’s indescribable,” he said.
But the ramp was not David’s only gift. The other gift was a new found friendship with someone who understands that life can change in a moment’s notice.
You Can Help
When I worked with the Inclusion Network, we used to say…”Disability is the one minority population that any of us can find ourselves in, without any notice.” Accessibility modifications, while a necessity for someone with a disability to maintain his/her independence and quality of life, are very expensive. This makes it difficult for PWC to help everyone who needs and can benefit from the service. PWC currently has 125 people on a waiting list.
Proceeds from its upcoming Oscar Night® America Party will benefit PWC’s Modifications for Mobility Program. It will be Sunday, February 26 beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland. Cost is $150 per person. If you can’t attend, you can still bid in their online auction at www.biddingforgood.com/PWCoscars. For more, please visit their website or call Chris Owens, 513-351-7921.
More Than 3,500 Volunteers Participated In Prepare Affair
This past weekend, November 12, over 3,500 volunteers gave of their time to rake leaves, clean gutters and more for 1000 older homeowners in need. It was all part of People Working Cooperatively’s 24th annual Prepare Affair. The Event was presented by The Home Depot and sponsored by the City of Cincinnati, Hubert and Toyota; supported by Ingredient Masters, Scripps Howard Foundation, UBS, Viox Services, The Vectren Company, WCPO-TV and the First Bank of Richmond.
What a wonderful project to help people maintain their independence in their homes.
People Working Cooperatively Volunteers Help Most Vulnerable
Such a great project. Repair Affair is People Working Cooperatively’s (PWC) annual spring volunteer event, providing home repairs and modifications that enable low-income, elderly and residents with disabilities to remain safely in their homes. For a day individuals, businesses and community groups help a PWC client (with supervision from a trained professional) with home repairs that would otherwise be unaffordable.
Our community is so giving that this year 800 people signed up to help 135 PWC clients. In fact an extra day had to be added to accommodate everybody’s generosity.
Repair Affair was developed by People Working Cooperatively in 1983 as a free outreach program to help homeowners who are often the most vulnerable to keep their homes safe and habitable. Presented by Home Depot and sponsored by the City of Cincinnati, the event was held across the Tri-State in greater Cincinnati, northern Kentucky and Indiana.
Would you like to help? PWC also has a fall event called Prepare Affair where volunteers will help people with services from raking leaves to cleaning gutters and other small winter preparation tasks.
