Luis Choro shingles the roof of the house at 5 Sanborn St. in Peabody as part of an Habitat for Humanity project. Item Photo by Owen O’Rourke
By Adam Swift
PEABODY — Charlene Cruz could only stare in wonder as Habitat for Humanity volunteers transformed her Sanborn Street house on Wednesday.
“My husband passed away four years ago, that’s why I needed help,” said Cruz. “I was praying all the time, saying to my husband that the roof was getting bad, it was not leaking, but it was bad. I couldn’t close the windows; it was cold and the house needed a lot of work.”
Due to her roof’s structural failures and the home’s old, inefficient windows, Cruz also struggled with extremely high energy bills.
She got in touch with staff at City Hall, who in turn got her in touch with the North Shore branch of Habitat for Humanity.
After some conversations with city officials and Habitat, Cruz was able to take advantage of a unique three-way partnership between the city, Habitat for Humanity, and Beverly based Coastal Windows & Exteriors.
Don Preston, president of Habitat for Humanity North Shore, said the project is one of the most ambitious the organization has undertaken in Peabody this year.
“Thanks to Coastal Windows & Exteriors’ generosity with the roof replacement, we are able to leverage funds from the City of Peabody Community Preservation Act toward updating the windows, which also need replacement, and fixing the front porch. This is a great example of bringing together the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to accomplish more than any one of us could do alone,” said Preston.
This is the third Habitat project Coastal Windows has undertaken in the past several years, owner Stephanie Vanderbilt said.
“People ask us why we do this, and I tell them that we are in the community and we want to help the community,” said Vanderbilt.
In addition to a number of regular Habitat for Humanity volunteers, Coastal Windows employees were well represented on Sanborn Street up on the roof, installing windows, and building the porch. Vanderbilt estimated that the retail value of the materials alone that were donated by her company were nearly $20,000.
Vanderbilt said she first got involved with Habitat through Women Build, a Habitat program for women who want to learn construction skills and build homes for communities, and developed a case of “Habititis.”
Working with Habitat allows Vanderbilt and her employees to do unto others as you would have them do unto you, she said.
Projects like the one on Cruz’s Sanborn Street home have multiple benefits for the community and the volunteers, said Gary Cowles, president of the board of directors for Habitat for Humanity North Shore.
“Everyone here is giving back and it makes them feel good,” said Cowles. “The family is able to stay in the house because of the repairs, and the neighborhood is revitalized. It’s a nice neighborhood, but we want to keep it that way.”
City Council President Peter McGinn said he and his wife Jeanette have been involved with Habitat for Humanity for years. Jeanette McGinn was a volunteer coordinator for Habitat and the couple worked on a successful project on Park Street.
“I’m delighted to see another, smaller project happen in the city and in Ward 2,” said the councilor.
For Cruz, she was delighted to see so many people lending a hand to make sure she has a safer, more energy efficient home.
“I’m so pleased with what’s happening today,” she said. “There are so many great people and everyone is so nice. They are all chipping in and working together; it’s really amazing.”
Adam Swift can be reached at [email protected].
