Home renovators help needy families

A Toronto building company is doing much more than just renovating homes – it’s keeping families together.

Resources Supporting Family and Community Legacies Inc., a not-for-profit organization, assists families with a disabled, sick or elderly member to make the renovations needed to better facilitate the care of their loved ones.

Sponsors include Home Depot, The Knights of Columbus, Siemens Canada, Cooper Lighting and the Ontario Trillium Foundation. They donate building materials, light fixtures and physical labour so renovations can be completed as speedily possible.

Volunteer labour
Volunteers are also recruited to provide physical labour. The company installs everything from bathroom grab bars and lifts to roll-in showers and wider doors allowing wheelchair access.
Yet, some of the best work this company does has nothing to do with hammers or nails.

“It’s important we give back a person’s sense of value,” says Trevor Man, program co-ordinator. “There’s nothing worse then feeling insufficient.”

At a cost of $6,000 to $45,000 a project, this is no small task, making fundraising an important aspect of the group’work. Man says he can turn a monthly contribution of $40 – the price of a cup of coffee a day – into $2,500 worth of renovations.
 
Money raised also covers some skilled labour, and without any breaks from the government, the organization is also responsible for purchasing building permits.

Ideal work for retirees
With a goal of 12 renovations per year, Resources Supporting Family and Community Legacies Inc., is also in need of volunteers. “It’s ideal work for retired people who aren’t burdened with jobs and time restraints,” says Man.

“We have the only program in the country that provides accessibility with the renovations we do. When people come to us, they’re often at the end-of-their-rope, having been turned down by the government for financial assistance. It’s often the smallest voices who get the cuts. We give them a larger voice.”

For further information, contact Harry van Bommel at 416-264-4665.