Paint the Town 2011

Northern and Southern Hills Residents Paint the Town

Deadwood SD- NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources and volunteers celebrated the 16th annual Paint the Town June 4th-11th. The event was apart of NeighborWorks American National NeighborWorks Week.  Armed with paint brushes and cans of paint, residents from the Northern and Southern Hills painted a house in the communities of Box Elder, Lead, Deadwood, Edgemont, Sturgis and Rapid City. 

Six homes were painted throughout the Black Hills. Including the first home that was painted for Paint the Town in 1994.  Long time Deadwood resident Bill Auer has lived in his home for 75 years.  Being located right on Main Street, and high traffic area, it is one of the first structures that many see when they enter Deadwood. To improve the visual impact and the quality of Mr. Bill Auer’s home volunteers scraped, painted and made the home shine.  The first “Paint the Town” was held in June 1994 when 25 volunteers painted one house in Deadwood.  Over the last 16 years, over 80 homes and over 3000 volunteers have dedicated time to this annual event.  Paint the Town is not just for the homeowner, it has a positive affect on the whole community. 

“Community improvement activities are a vital piece of neighborhood revitalization,” said Sharon Martinisko Community Outreach Coordinator of NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources. “The volunteers are making their neighbor’s homes look better, and in doing so you’re making the whole community look better. For most of these families, there’s no other way this is going to happen, and they just appreciate it so much.”

This year marked the 28th Anniversary of the event sponsored by NeighborWorks America.  During National NeighborWorks Week, organizations across the country mobilize tens of thousands of business people, residents and government officials in a week of neighborhood change and awareness.

Plant Swap 2011 

In the Lead-Deadwood area, volunteers planted flowers for Plant the Town, painted homes, and the Fourth Annual Community Plant Swap was held giving both new and experienced gardeners the opportunity to share and swap plants and ideas.  NeighborWorks® weeks ended with a bang at the First ever Lead Live Open Summer Market.  All of the events helped bring community members together.  If you would like more information on NeighborWorks Week, or any of the other events that took place please contact NeighborWorks at 605-578-140.

NeighborWorks® ‘Paint the Town “is sponsored by NeighborWorks® America, South Dakota Housing Authority. Additional sponsors and volunteers for the 16th Annual Paint the Town Event include: Deadwood Gulch, TDG Communications, Lead Chamber, First Interstate Bank of Sturgis Lead/Deadwood and Rapid City, BoxElder Job Corp, Black Hills Baptist Church, Northern Hills Federal Credit Union, and Wells Fargo.

For More Information Contact

NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources

Media Contact: Sharon

605-578-1401

www.neighborworksdhr.org

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Lead Live Brings Sunshine to Lead Main Street



Over 200 community members came out and enjoyed Lead Live on June 11th. Can't wait to see you all again on July 9th! Spread the word!



Lead SD, June 11, 2011- Lead Live Open Summer Market kicked off with a bang.  Over 200 community members gathered around Lead Main Street to celebrate community and enjoy music, food and home made items. 

Music filled the air in down town Lead all night.  Steve Thorpe, Fancy CreekJumpers, and Sioux Falls musician Shantel Bolks, brought their talents to Lead main street and helped us a celebrate the importance of community.  Lead resident Kena Brown also performed her belly dance routine. 

The residents of Lead made this event a success.  Smiles and laughter kept the sun shining.  Children enjoyed the jumping castle while parents and residents shopped at the local vendors.

“Lead Live is for the community of Lead, this event it to get the residents out and about and enjoy everything that Lead has to offer.  Lead is a great community with lots of great ideas; Lead Live just helps bring all of the great ideas together!” NeighborWorks Marketing Director, Stephany Valkenburg.

Next month, July 9th Paul Kopco and Straight Shooter will be performing on the Lead Live Stage from 4pm-8pm. 

Lead Live would like to thank all of the vendors, residents and sponsors that came out and supported the event.  NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources, Lead Chamber, Homestake Visitor Center, Wharf Gold Resources, Deadwood/Lead Art Center, Black Hills Mining Museum, Golden Hills Resort, Lead Historic Opera House, First National Bank, The Lodge at Deadwood and Lead-Deadwood Community Foundation.

For more information on Lead contact NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resource at 605-578-1401 or find us on facebook @Lead Live. 

 The men of the hour!  Fancy CreekJumpers kept Lead Live a Rockin!  Thanks Guys! We are so lucky to have you in our community!

Shantel Bolks acoustic performance on the Lead Live Stage June 11, 2011.  You are welcomed to come back share your talent with us anytime! We love it!!

The Poppe Family-Power of Partnerships

On March 15^th, 2011 Amy and Jason Poppe relocated their growing family from a two-bedroom home in a high-crime neighborhood to a four bedroom, two-bath home in a family friendly neighborhood. 

The family purchased their home with the assistance of NeighborWorks Dakota® Home Resources, South Dakota Housing Development Authority, USDA Rural Development, and Dakota Land Trust.  Without these partnerships the Poppe’s would not have been able to afford their home.  This project was made possible thanks to strong partnerships and the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP).  NeighborWorks® purchased 2104 Russet located in Rapid Valley in 2009, utilizing the NSP and USDA Rural Development funds.  NSP was established through congress to help stabilize communities and neighborhoods in the wake of the foreclosure crisis. 

To make this a safe home, 2104 Russet needed to be completely rehabbed and updated.  The house had sat empty for two years and had a serious mold infestation.  NeighborWorks gutted the basement, replaced all the flooring, repaired drywall, and updated the kitchen and bathrooms.  To prevent future water damage, which gad caused the mold problem in the first place the property was landscaped to correct the negative grading issue. 

This home is ideal for the Poppe family because it large enough to fit their growing needs, fits within their income and the home is next door to Amy’s parents. “ My Children get to grow in a safe neighborhood next to our family. This home was perfect for us!” Amy stated.

2104 Russet not only provided a safe and affordable home for the family, the improvements will help increase the property values in the neighborhood. The long-term effects of this project, and other NSP projects, are unlimited. Thanks to our strong partnerships, the Poppe family gets to continue making memories in a neighborhood that is already so dear to their family.  Home is where the heart is and the neighborhood is what makes the memories complete.  

Home Sweet Home- Partnerships Assist in Home Ownership

In 2009  the city of Spearfish worked with the Dakota Land Trust and developers of the new McGuigan Ranch subdivision to purchase lots for the land trust.  The city sells those lots to the Dakota Land Trust as they are needed, at a price of $5,000 each.  

Dakota Land Trust now has five families in homes at McGuigan Ranch.  The newest family in the Neighborhood is Jamie Krueger and her daughter Taylor.  Jamie and Taylor moved into their new home the first week of April.  

Thanks to the partnership with USDA Rural Development, Dakota Land Trust and NeighborWorks® Dakota Home Resources, Jamie Krueger was able to purchase her new home.  Jamie said that she is thankful for all the programs that have assisted her throughout the home buying process.   "I wanted to own a home, but as a single mom it was hard to imagine being able to afford a home, thanks to their programs I was able to purchase a beautiful home in a safe neighborhood".

NeighborWorks Daktoa Home Resources 2009 Annual Video

The Harmon Family – Dedication and Hard Work Pays Off

The Trailer House 

  

 “After three years of living in that trailer we knew we had to do something” Robin Harmon stated.

The Harmon family relocated from Nebraska to South Dakota in 2005.  Due to the high cost of housing in the Black Hills, and lack of options they moved into a substandard trailer.  Robin described the trailer as being a heat box in the summer, and a freezer in the winter. They looked for other housing options but everything was out of their price range.

Three years after living in a trailer house that was infested with mold, constantly leaking water and a falling ceiling the family knew they had to make a change.  Rex and Robin asked around at work and NeighborWorks® was highly recommended. 

The couple contacted NeighborWorks® Dakota Home Resources to begin the process of building credit and creating habits that would allow them to move into a new home.  “The Harmon family attended all of our classes, improved their credit and stayed focused; their commitment shows that hard work pays off.  They now have a safe place to call home”, NeighborWorks® Home Buyer Counselor Vonda MCcarty stated.

The Harmons New Home

The couples dedication and hard work paid off; two years later they now have a safe and affordable home.  Robin stated, “The best part about owning our own home is we can do whatever we want, we can paint, we can plant a garden and we can improve the quality of our home without asking anyone, we have more freedom and less stress.”   Rex said “it was a lot of work and it took a lot of patience, but we did our best and now we have a home.”  When asked if he had any advice for other families that might be in a similar situation he said, “have patience, keep a budget, seek help and opportunities will come”.

The Bathroom 

The Kitchen

Their Living Room

Applications Needed for Group WorkCamps. Home Rehab Repairs!

NeighborWorks  Dakota Home Resources Plans to Bring up to 400volunteers to Sturgis to Improve the Homes of Local Area Residents

Deadwood, SD- NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources is hosting the sixth annual Group WorkCamp in July 10^th-16^th through out the Black Hills. Over 400 adult and teenage volunteers will provide free home repairs to over 70 local residents. 

The repairs are being provided through the Group Cares (formerly Group Workcamps Foundation) program, sponsored locally by NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources. The Group Cares (formerly Group Workcamps Foundation) is a non-profit, interdenominational Christian volunteer home-repair organization headquartered in Loveland, Colorado.  This summer, an anticipated 25,000 young people and adults will participate in 43 Workcamps in communities across the United States and Canada. 

At each Workcamp, volunteers – all members of church youth groups – volunteer a week of their time to repair homes throughout the community.  “This represents about 12,000 hours of volunteer labor, worth over $110,000, to the community,” said Sharon Martinisko, Community Outreach Coordinator of NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources.

“These really are remarkable young people,” said Jeff Thompson, of Group Cares (formerly Group Workcamps Foundation).  “Each one is actually paying for the privilege of working in your community.  Workcamp registration fees are used to cover our costs for food, insurance, and building materials.”

This year’s Workcamp will be housed at Sturgis Brown High School in Sturgis,  “This incredible service to the area would be impossible without the wonderful cooperation of the Sturgis Brown High School,” remarked Ms. Martinisko of NeighborWorks.  Group Cares (formerly Group Workcamps Foundation) will reimburse all lodging costs to Sturgis Brown High School.

NeighborWorks Dakota Home Resources is a non-profit whose mission is to assist in providing decent, safe and affordable housing and revitalizing neighborhoods to improve the quality of life in our communities.  NeighborWorks encourages anyone in need of assistance in doing home repairs to apply.   Repairs offered through the Workcamp include interior and exterior painting, weatherization, porch construction and repair, wheelchair ramp construction, and other work.  Residents in North Rapid City and the Northern Black Hills (within 40 minutes of Sturgis Brown High School) can

obtain an application online at www.nhsblackhills.org or by calling 578-1401 to have an application mailed.  The Workcamp repairs will take place July 10 – 16^th, 2011.  All applications are due to NeighborWorks by April 15^th.

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