GE workers help rehab facility for retired veterans

LYNN – Susan Campbell, director of Habitat PLUS, lucked out the day Patrick Burke happened to jog by her door and later brought some people back to fix it.”About four years ago we got hooked up with Habitat PLUS and we’ve been working with them ever since,” said Burke, who heads up the GE Veterans Council.The council, made up of GE employees who may or may not be actual veterans, takes on service projects throughout the year and Campbell said she is undeniably thrilled that her home is one of those.”These GE people are fantastic,” she said. “If we didn’t have them doing this we wouldn’t have this place. We don’t have the resources or the connections that they do.”Habitat PLUS offers transitional housing for veterans dealing with psychological issues. Burke said as a non-profit, the home, located at 516 and 520 Essex St., is always short on cash and long on needs, and the GE Veterans Council is more than happy to help.Burke will tell you he simply stumbled across the home one day and decided to get involved. Campbell tells a slightly different story. She said Burke was running on his lunch hour when he passed the home.”He knew it was a home for retired vets and he was looking for a new project to support, so he told his group about us,” she said. “Then I got a knock on the door one day and he said he would like to offer us a day of help.”The first year the volunteers cleaned up the yard, the next the Veterans Council donated $5,000 and GE matched the grant, Campbell said.”Five thousand turned into 10,000, which that year literally kept our doors open,” she said.Last year the group rebuilt the home’s entryway, replaced windows and repaired the rooftop cupola atop of 516 Essex, which had suffered severe water damage.”They also helped with a new roof and staircase,” Campbell added.This year crews of nearly 30 volunteers spent two days demolishing and rebuilding a large deck and repairing siding at 516 Essex. Burke said there was also a mason, Shawn McLaughlin of McLaughlin Masonry, who donated his services for extensive masonry repairs.”Cornerstone Construction donated their time,” he added. “Owner Todd Protz did it in honor of his late father-in-law, Sherman F. Rawding, USMC Korea.”Burke said Cornerstone was the driving force in getting the deck replaced. GE donated about $3,600 and another anonymous donor added nearly $6,000 more. The money went for materials. GE also donated the volunteers who landscaped, painted and resided for two full days.Campbell said it was amazing to see 30-40 people show up and turn out what she estimates is about $25,000 worth of work for free.”What they do and they do it in three days is amazing and they are so gracious,” she said. “I am blown away by their generosity.”She said the work also improves the quality of life for the people who call Habitat PLUS home.”It sounds crazy but to have a nice place for them to sit outside, where it’s peaceful – it’s just beautiful,” Campbell said.Chris Stevens can be reached at [email protected].