Our Volunteers
The Grand Harbor Community Gives Back
What’s your favorite day of the week?
If you ask Grand Harbor residents Rose Virgin and Annette Jameson, the answer is clear – Wednesdays.
For them, each Wednesday begins and ends in laughter, with steadfast volunteer efforts happening throughout.
Rose and Annette have each volunteered in the ReStore for over a decade. However, the pair don’t work alone, as they comprise a larger collective of 37 engaged volunteers. Though most crew members are seasonal residents, they have logged over 1,000 volunteer hours in the last year alone.
Since the ReStore opened its doors in 2005, Grand Harbor has had an active presence. Before ReStore Wednesdays originated, Grand Harbor women mainly volunteered on the job site. From there, involvement and interest continued to grow. The group broke into two segments, and in 2014, Rose began leading the ReStore team.
“I love that our involvement helps to increase store earnings,” Rose began. “The mission can continue to build 1-in-3 Habitat homes.”
When an item is donated to the ReStore, the profits generated from that item go directly toward the building of affordable housing.
Each Wednesday during the season, the Grand Harbor crew helps price and coordinate the sale of merchandise – including housewares, linens, clothing, art, lamps, and electronics. If the group feels their workday wasn’t sufficient, they’ll even come in additional days to ensure progress is made.
“We’re so eager to get things sold. We do whatever is needed to get the job done,” Rose said.
Rose and Annette beam with pride when they consider how volunteering has positively impacted their lives.
“Every day I go home, I feel like I’ve made a difference in someone’s life. And I did it with my Grand Harbor friends,” Annette said.
At Indian River Habitat, there are many ways to get involved. Whether you prefer swinging a hammer, making a monetary gift, or working in the ReStore, every hand makes a difference.
If you’re interested in volunteering your group for a ReStore workday, contact Habitat’s Volunteer Engagement Coordinator, Dani Dominique, to schedule your opportunity.
Don Poust... 14,000 Hours
If you have spent any amount of time on an Indian River Habitat build site over the past twenty years, you likely have swung a hammer next to one of our most faithful volunteers, Don Poust.
When Don first started volunteering, he would help install ceiling fans during his evenings after work. With time, installing ceiling fans led to placing roof shingles, which later led to being the leader of the electrical wire team, ultimately reaching 14,000 hours of service to Indian River Habitat.
When Don retired in 2008, he took on a new full-time position – volunteer!
Don credits Habitat’s mission of “togetherness” as the thing that motivates him to get up each morning and get to work. “Every little bit from each of us, gets the jobs done,” Don says.
To get involved, visit ircHabitat.org or call our office and ask to speak to someone about volunteering.
Meet Larry Jones
“One of the most basic human rights is housing – the right not only to have a place to live, but to have it be your own.”
Since 1984, President Jimmy Carter has been a faithful friend and advocate of Habitat’s mission, serving as inspiration for those who feel compelled to volunteer in the better portion of their lives.
If you ask Larry Jones, Carter’s 38-year legacy profoundly impacted him, ultimately leading to his picking up a hammer toward homeownership.
Larry began his journey with Indian River Habitat in 2016, however, prior to his volunteering with us, led a civically active life. In fact, before retiring from the business sector in 2013, Larry boasted a 22-year career in Social Services.
Soon after departing his role as a Fraud Investigator in New Jersey, Larry and his wife packed up their belongs and relocated to Delaware –building both a new life and home to retire. As fate would have it, Larry noticed a ReStore truck driving throughout his neighborhood, signaling his aforementioned desire to get involved. Just two days later, Larry connected with the Central Delaware affiliate and got to work.
Habitat and Larry’s lifelong career were the perfect marriage of his favorite pastime. Whether serving as a guidepost for former clients or painting a Habitat home, Larry runs toward experiences where he utilizes his own two hands to make a difference.
Larry’s longing to “get his hands dirty” was cultivated at a young age. At just 12 years old, Larry helped his father build his family home. A few years later, when a neighborhood family lost their home to devastation, Larry once again sprang into action.
From school age to present day, Larry still has that same drive and desire to help families achieve housing stability.
“We’re filling a need for the community that has often been overlooked,” Larry said.
Since Indian River Habitat opened its doors in 1991, over 500 families have been served through new home construction and critical home repairs. Together, with volunteers like Larry, we are able to amplify our production because of their dedication to our mission and their commitment to helping us help working families.
“I love it. I truly get up for it each day,” Larry concluded.
6 years and 2000 volunteer hours later, Larry continues to show up each Wednesday and Friday to give a hand to those who need it most. President Carter is an inspiration to us all, but the determination displayed by Larry encourages us just the same.
The Grand Harbor Community Gives Back
What’s your favorite day of the week?
If you ask Grand Harbor residents Rose Virgin and Annette Jameson, the answer is clear – Wednesdays.
For them, each Wednesday begins and ends in laughter, with steadfast volunteer efforts happening throughout.
Rose and Annette have each volunteered in the ReStore for over a decade. However, the pair don’t work alone, as they comprise a larger collective of 37 engaged volunteers. Though most crew members are seasonal residents, they have logged over 1,000 volunteer hours in the last year alone.
Since the ReStore opened its doors in 2005, Grand Harbor has had an active presence. Before ReStore Wednesdays originated, Grand Harbor women mainly volunteered on the job site. From there, involvement and interest continued to grow. The group broke into two segments, and in 2014, Rose began leading the ReStore team.
“I love that our involvement helps to increase store earnings,” Rose began. “The mission can continue to build 1-in-3 Habitat homes.”
When an item is donated to the ReStore, the profits generated from that item go directly toward the building of affordable housing.
Each Wednesday during the season, the Grand Harbor crew helps price and coordinate the sale of merchandise – including housewares, linens, clothing, art, lamps, and electronics. If the group feels their workday wasn’t sufficient, they’ll even come in additional days to ensure progress is made.
“We’re so eager to get things sold. We do whatever is needed to get the job done,” Rose said.
Rose and Annette beam with pride when they consider how volunteering has positively impacted their lives.
“Every day I go home, I feel like I’ve made a difference in someone’s life. And I did it with my Grand Harbor friends,” Annette said.
At Indian River Habitat, there are many ways to get involved. Whether you prefer swinging a hammer, making a monetary gift, or working in the ReStore, every hand makes a difference.
If you’re interested in volunteering your group for a ReStore workday, contact Habitat’s Volunteer Engagement Coordinator, Dani Dominique, to schedule your opportunity.
Ready To Volunteer?
