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Bank volunteers lend a hand at new cold-night shelter Date published: 9/17/2009
BY AMY FLOWERS UMBLE
Two days a week, a group of bank employees trade their BlackBerrys, laptops and credit reports for paint rollers, scrapers and wide brushes. Area BB&T branches have tackled the project of getting a former Stafford County school building ready to shelter the area's homeless this winter. It's part of a new BB&T initiative called the "Lighthouse Project." Regional managers choose local service projects, and the company gives employees a few hours of vacation time to complete the work. It has two projects under way in the area. "BB&T employees have always been involved in their communities in this area," said Donta Wilson, president of the bank's Battlefield Region. "Our Lighthouse Project shows our commitment to others as we serve as a beacon of hope for those most impacted by these difficult economic times." Locally, BB&T managers chose Micah Ecumenical Ministries' cold-weather shelter, located near the Rappahannock Area Community Services Board Adult Activity Center on State Route 3 in southern Stafford, and the local Boys & Girls Club. The shelter staffed by Micah and church volunteers on sub-freezing nights from November through March will have its own digs for the first time ever this winter. In the school-turned-storage building, boxes labeled "Mayfest" and "Fall Wreaths" still fill the main room, which loan officers and mortgage supervisors painted "liveable green" last week. The bank staff worked alongside Micah volunteers--homeless men participating in the ministry's Giving Back program. For serving, the homeless earn laundry vouchers, bus tickets and other rewards. "It's been a really neat community project," said Micah Director Meghann Cotter. "So many different pieces have come together, from businesses to the people who go back and sleep in a tent." More than 50 BB&T employees signed up to help and will work in shifts over the next month. Micah has also tapped college groups, churches and Rotary clubs for volunteers. Inside the old school, some floors are bare and electric wires hang from the ceiling. The place still needs quite a bit of work. "But it's come a long way since we first started," said Micah volunteer Jake Black. The work should be done by mid-October so the cold-weather shelter can open Nov. 1. The shelter houses homeless people on nights when temperatures dip below 32 degrees. The overnight guests will first eat dinners at downtown churches, then take a bus to the shelter. They'll go to Micah's hospitality center in the mornings for breakfast and showers. As the bankers cleaned windows and painted walls, they said the shelter was a worthy service project. The bank also donated 60 cots and blankets for the shelter. Providing such simple necessities shows the depth of the need, said Sharon Kendall, regional mortgage manager. "We've got employees that are struggling as well," she said. "Sometimes, when you struggle, giving to others really helps you." Amy Flowers Umble: 540/735-1973
Date published: 9/17/2009
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