Lending Helping Hands to Those in Need in the Denver Community

by Brandi Keith • June 12, 2023

Volunteering with Brothers

Every year The Sherman Agency, Inc contacts an outreach program to find volunteer opportunities in the metro Denver area relative to housing and repair efforts. Events over the past few years were fairly nonexistent given restrictions surrounding the global pandemic. With limitations gradually lessening, this allowed our company to join forces with a Denver nonprofit organization. This year in late May we participated in the Brothers Redevelopment, Inc. 45th Annual Paint-A-Thon. This program is tailored to serving lower-income senior homeowners in the Denver metro community that are often times living with a disability. Volunteers collaborate with Brothers Redevelopment to paint the exterior of homes during the spring and summer seasons. To date, the Paint-A-Thon program has painted over 7,500 homes along with more than 133,000 volunteers.

Paint-A-Thon

Gathering our group of employees and family members, The Sherman Agency embarked on the painting project at a home located in the Burns Brentwood neighborhood of southwest Denver. With the help of Brothers’ interns and project managers under the direction of Jason Stutzman, Senior Coordinator of the Volunteer Department and Paint-A-Thon, we rolled up our sleeves and then began taping and cleaning the exterior of the house. We learned that Brothers Redevelopment’s Home Modification and Repair (HMR) Department built an accessible ramp to the front of the home the previous year. Later we were joined by Chad Nibbelink, Director of the Volunteer Department, leading a tour of partners including the Area Agency on Aging from the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) and Karen Klein, Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist, with the Colorado Division of Aging & Adult Services. Feeling accomplished and proud of our hard work, we wrapped up painting and greeted the homeowner with the finished product.

 

A Plethora of Programs

Aside from the Paint-A-Thon program Brothers Redevelopment has curated a long list of outreach programs since its inception as a nonprofit organization in 1971. The company’s mission is to be a compassionate organization that stands in the corner of the state’s most vulnerable residents while educating the general population on critical housing topics. Among their efforts, Brothers has six major programs and departments. Brothers Senior Services Coordination offers assistance with applying for senior benefits, financial counseling and education for home buying, transportation, and many other Aging in Place resources available in the community. Brothers Redevelopment’s Home Modification and Repair (HMR) Department, with the help of local government funding, provides interior home repairs such as plumbing and electrical, exterior repairs including roofing and sewer, and accessibility modifications like grab bar installation and wheelchair ramp construction. Additionally, Brothers Property Management Communities owns and operates 14 communities with affordable housing in federally subsidized independent living communities for the elderly and family households. Lastly, Brothers facilitates a Rent/Mortgage Assistance Program for those in need of Denver’s Temporary Rental and Utility Assistance Program(TRUA).

Here are some impressive stats from Brothers Redevelopment Programs in 2022:

  • the Paint-A-Thon Program had 1,945 volunteers painting 375 homes saving homeowners $561,500
  • the HMR program repaired 375 homes saving homeowners $1.8 Million
  • 3,186 older adults received housing resources through Aging in Place services
  • 29,449 individuals served throughout all programs
  • $8,650,140 provided in rent, mortgage, and utility assistance

 

 

 

 

 

 

For a detailed look at Brothers Redevelopment programs, services, and sponsorship opportunities visit their website at https://brothersredevelopment.org and visit their Facebook page for recent community announcements.