Lowe’s staff join local volunteers in shelter makeover

  PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The Sister Mary O’Donnell Homeless Shelter in Presque Isle was the site Thursday of a makeover project spearheaded by employees from the local Lowe’s store, as part of the business’ Heroes program.
The Lowe’s Heroes volunteer program encourages employees to form teams and adopt a volunteer project with a local nonprofit organization or K-12 public school to make a difference in their community. Past projects tackled by the Presque Isle store staff include school and public playgrounds in surrounding communities.
“We select a project in the community each year. Each store picks their own project, with the homeless shelter being selected this year. The facility has a lot of needs and we felt this was a good fit for our program,” said Jon Curtis, assistant store manager.
Curtis said about 18 store employees — some working their shift and others coming in to volunteer their time to the project — and about a half dozen volunteers from the Family Worship Center teamed up Aug. 28 to perform various upgrades.
“We’re re-doing the kitchen floor, painting on the first and second floors, hanging shelves. PPG Industries donated several gallons of Olympic-brand paint, while the other supplies come from Lowe’s,” said Curtis. “Lowe’s covered the cost of all other products and supplies.”
He said between the hours of labor and the supplies used, thousands of dollars go into the average project.
“It depends on the project and what’s being done,” he said. “Prior to this project, Lowe’s had already donated a washer to the shelter.”
“You can imagine the wear and tear in a normal home. Picture 25-30 people here daily needing to do laundry. Lowe’s was great; they saved the day,” said Kevin Guyan, volunteer coordinator and activities director for the shelter.
“With funding cuts to the shelter, this was definitely a need we were happy to meet,” added Curtis.
Stephen Eyler, executive director of Homeless Services of Aroostook, expressed gratitude for the extra help.
“Volunteer help is always such a big deal to us. We’re bare bones when it comes to staffing. For Lowe’s to supply the staffing and provide the manpower — these are the projects that have needed to be done for a very long time and continue to need to be done. If Lowe’s hadn’t come to us, they’d remain undone indefinitely,” said Eyler.
“We’re incredibly grateful to Lowe’s for their generosity,” he said. “When our washer died, they helped us, delivering and installing the machine at no cost to us.”
Eyler said it “wasn’t unusual to have 25-30 people here at any time, with five to 10 children in-house,” creating a steady stream of traffic through the facility, causing considerable wear on walls and floors.
“The kitchen is an intricate part of the services we provide. It’s a high-traffic area in high use daily,” he said.
In the past three years, Eyler said HSA has had 563 individuals stay at the facility.
“Of that, 150 were children,” noted Eyler.
He said even more are turned away annually.
“Another sad statistic is for every one we served, we had to turn three away. And those are the ones we know of. The issue of homelessness in Aroostook is constant,” said Eyler. “We’re the only shelter north of Bangor for use by the general public.”
He called the facility a “high-barrier shelter.”
“That’s because we serve primarily families, women and children. Unfortunately we have to turn away anyone with a past criminal history or untreated mental issues, due to safety concerns. Safety is central here — key to our policies for service,” Eyler said.
“We’re a family-based program. Security is paramount, with a strict need for compliance,” added Guyan.
Eyler said clients undergo an extensive background check before entering the shelter. “Even volunteers are strictly screened,” noted Guyan.
A total of nine staff members serve the needs of the shelter, as well as the transitional housing program.
‘Volunteers are crucial component. They perform the cooking and other duties. Groups like the members of the Family Worship Center are among our regular volunteers. They’re very good cooks. We really need them, since we can only have one staff member on at any time. Our volunteers are a real blessing,” said Eyler. “The Family Worship Center folks come every week; they volunteer, cook in the kitchen and bring extra volunteers for other projects.”
He said there’s always something going on at the facility and a need for extra hands.
“There are always things needing to be done. When staff are here by themselves, having another person on hand is a huge help,” Eyler said.
Volunteers, including members of the Grant Memorial United Methodist Church, have made a big difference in keeping the transitional housing units in good condition.
“Our transitional housing units were built a long time ago and are high maintenance. Area church groups have helped paint and perform other maintenance on those,” said Eyler.
Eyler is grateful for public support, be it in the form of volunteer services or other donations.
“In-kind donations can be brought to the shelter. We’re staffed 24/7 and can provide receipts for all donations for tax purposes. Food is an ongoing need. We also focus on things to meet the immediate needs of shelter residents, such as toiletries, clothing and toys for the children. We can also use car seats, strollers and things people can use when getting set up in a new place — household essentials such as pots and pans, dishes,” he said.
“If someone has other items, such as large furniture to give away, we re-direct them to places like Millie’s Mission. We have a strong working relationship with other nonprofit agencies in The County,” he said.
In addition to Lowe’s staff donating their services and supplies, the company also covered lunch for everyone.
“They knew we’d have the place torn apart for lunch, so Lowe’s officials generously offered to cover lunch for everyone. For supper, the Pizza Box in Presque Isle heard our kitchen would be shut down and provided 10 pizzas for dinner,” said Guyan. “We appreciate the public support.”
FMI on how to volunteer, call 762-6000. Donations can be mailed to: Homeless Services of Aroostook, PO Box 1753, Presque Isle, ME 04769 or dropped off at the facility at 745 Central Drive.