Local volunteers team up to do home makeovers for low-income families

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Just a few brush strokes of white paint made Willie Davis' fence look like new.

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"I’m just thankful for how everything is working out for me," said Davis. "They have helped me. Done work around my house, so I’m just thankful."

It's the first real improvement at his home since a veterans group helped him buy a house three years ago.

On Thursday, volunteers with the Charlotte Mecklenburg Housing Partnership and the recycling company, Republic Services, teamed up to do home projects for 25 low-income families in the Druid Hills neighborhood, just north of uptown Charlotte.

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Joanne Simmons, a volunteer for Republic Services, helped paint a house.

"It makes me have a sense of pride. I don’t live here in this community, but to know we are making it better, hopefully it will instill pride in others to do this in their community," she said.

A $250,000 grant helped support all the projects, from planting flowers and cleaning up gutters to painting entire homes.

Volunteers even put a fresh coat of paint on the fence of a 45-year-old horse farm.

Ron Martin who works with the horses said, "This is wonderful."

The Charlotte Mecklenburg Housing Partnership was a way to reward low-income homeowners in Druid Hills who over the years couldn't keep up with all the home improvement projects.

The average annual income in the neighborhood is $28,000.

Cox Media Group