During its “Day of Service” Oct. 24, in conjunction with the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors-National Association annual convention, 40 PHCC members participated with Rebuilding Together New Orleans (www.RTNO.org) to help renovate the exterior of a Mid-City home that was damaged by Hurricane Katrina.
The p-h-c contractors, spouses and staff scraped walls and applied primer to the shotgun-style house owned byPatriciaandLeonard Johnson, who had lived in the home for 20 years until August 2005. During the flooding, the Johnson were rescued and transported to Houston and eventually moved to Georgia for a year. They returned to live in a FEMA trailer near their house until the structure was again habitable.
“Although PHCC has partnered with Rebuilding Together for the last few years, particularly through our state and local chapters across the country, this was the first time we approached a project on a national level,” saidIke Casey, PHCC executive vice president. “We enjoyed being part of such a worthwhile effort, and were very pleased to see how much the homeowners appreciated the assistance.”
In addition to the day of service, PHCC recruited companies to contribute more than $10,000 of in-kind donations including: faucets, toilets, tank-less water heaters and other plumbing fixtures for use in the homes RTNO rebuilds and repairs. Participating companies were Accubid Systems, Barnett Pro Contractor Supplies, Bemis Mfg., InSinkErator, Gerber Plumbing Fixtures, Noritz, and Viega.
RTNO plans to rebuild 200 homes this fiscal year, doubling its completed homes from last year and matching the 200 homes rebuilt in total since Hurricane Katrina.
Source: PHCC-National Association
