"Rebuilding Together" holds Skilled Trades Day

 South Bend residents and workers volunteered on Saturday for the 27th year of Rebuilding Together.

The event was to improve homes for people who have low-income, especially the elderly and disabled.

The volunteers for this project include members of the St. Joseph Valley Building Trades. They provided plumbing, electrical, roofing, painting, and other repairs needed in the specific homes.

In all, 19 homes will be renovated in South Bend's Olive Street and Lincoln Way West neighborhood.

The Skilled Trades Day is the first of two neighborhood homes rehabilitation days.

The next one is the Community Volunteer Day on Saturday, April 11th.

The both weekends combined are expected to bring out about 500 volunteers and the estimated amount of repairs will total roughly $230,000.

This total includes 16 roof replacements and seven furnace upgrades.

President of "Rebuilding Together" Jim Sheetz said they want to keep homeowners in their homes as well as improve neighborhoods in South Bend.

“We can't say enough about our volunteers because without our volunteers, we wouldn't be able to do what we do,” said Sheetz.

Rebuilding together was formed in 1989 and was known as "Christmas in April," until the name changed in 2002.

The organization has renovated 866 homes and saved residents $11 million in repairs.

The homes are rehabilitated at no cost to the homeowner.