A group of friends pitch in to celebrate a 50th birthday and contribute to their community.
On the occasion of his fiftieth birthday, Jeremey Yates put the word out to his friends to join him in a service project. It was a new way to celebrate for Jeremy, who like most people, typically marked his birthday with a fishing trip or some other such gift to himself. About ten friends answered the call, “handy characters and community-minded people,” as Jeremy described them. Good news for HRB, because we had a project in mind that needed just that skillset and sensibility—the large garden at our Western View Terrace rental property was in need of a remodel.
“These are guys who have, or could, build a home from scratch,” Jeremy wrote, as plans were being made. Was there anything more they could do? And so, benches were added to the job so that the garden might be a place of both work and relaxation.
The original garden, whose beds and fences were beyond repair, had already been cleared, and the land, weeded and leveled. HRB provided the dirt, landscaping fabric, mulch, lumber, and raised metal beds so that Jeremy and his amiable crew could get to work. And in one long and strenuous afternoon, these friends created a beautiful and welcoming green space for the people who live at Western View Terrace.
“Families are having a hard time moving on to the island unless they have really high-income jobs,” observed Jeremy. “I like to live in a place that has economic diversity. So it’s an easy one to want to pitch in on an affordable property.”
Western View Terrace was built in 1982 and donated to HRB in 1997. The two buildings, each with four apartments and reserved for families earning up to 80% area median income (e.g. $89,550 for a family of three), are part of a larger market-rate development. In recent years, HRB has re-sided, re-roofed, replaced decks, and painted, ensuring that these permanently affordable homes provide healthy, comfortable, and gracious housing for generations of families to come.
Thank you, Jeremy and friends!
