Spring 2019

Become a [Re]Builder Are you passionate about our mission of repairing homes, revitalizing communities, and rebuilding lives? Then join the movement, and sign the pledge to become a [Re]Builder today! Sign the pledge

Don't miss our Safe & Healthy Homes Breakfast! Enjoy a delicious breakfast from 73 stories above the city, listen to a powerful story from a homeowner who has been impacted by the work we do, and help us work toward our vision of safe homes and communities for everyone! Reserve your spot now

GiveBIG (& eat BIG!) Support our vision of safe homes and communities for everyone on Wednesday, May 8th and support our GiveBIG campaign or head over to ShakeShack South Lake Union, where 25% of your total bill will go to help your neighbors in need!

Letter from the Executive Director

Hello [Re]Builders! If the sunny rain isn’t a sign, all the activity around here would certainly tell you that it’s spring, which means that National Rebuilding Month has arrived! As I announced in our last newsletter, this month-long event replaces Spring Rebuilding Day, and began this past weekend with one of our longtime partners, KPPF Consulting Engineers , ramping up their efforts to kick off the rebuilding effort. They are joined by Intellectual Ventures , who also stepped up this year to put together their largest project effort to date, and groups like Clark Construction , Exxel Pacific , Booz Allen Hamilton , Center for Spiritual Living , and others who consistently manage transformative projects. Thank you to all of our National Rebuilding Month sponsors for the impact you’ll have in our neighborhoods! If you weren’t able to join us for National Rebuilding Month this year, I hope you can join us for a celebration of service afterward at our 6th Annual Safe and Healthy Homes Breakfast . This year we will be in the Sky View Observatory at Columbia Tower, on Wednesday, May 8 th to showcase your work with us throughout the year while raising funding for our Safe at Home program, which engages individual volunteers and small, unsponsored groups on projects that involve everything from routine maintenance to critical one-off repairs that can keep people in their homes, preventing displacement and in some cases homelessness. A great line up of speakers will bring our work into perspective, and we’re excited to add an awards portion to the event, honoring some of our most important volunteers and partners. We hope to see you there. Last, our Open Volunteer Days continue to grow in popularity and demand – so much so that we should probably come up with a more inventive name for them. In fact, last month we had to open up two projects since our first one filled up within hours of releasing registration. So, if you’ve always wanted to volunteer with us – or volunteer with us more – but want to do so in a group setting, come learn a new skill, make some new friends, and help us build a supportive community of neighbors! And if you like that we’re offering “open volunteer” opportunities for anyone, with any skill level to get involved in our mission, the Breakfast is what helps fund these projects completed through our Safe at Home program. So join us on May the 8 th , or consider making a pre-pledge donation, either as part of GiveBig , or on our website . Wishing you and yours many beautiful days to come this spring! In the meantime, let’s make today beautiful for one of our neighbors together! Best, Caleb

National Rebuilding Month is here!

For 29 years now Spring Rebuilding Day has been our flagship program event, engaging the vast majority of the 40,000+ volunteers that we have worked with, accounting for close to half of the 2,027 projects we’ve completed, and certainly representing some of the most impactful work that we manage every year! This year, we’re taking things up a notch and joining the National Rebuilding Month movement. Rather than limiting projects to one day, we will be building with groups throughout the entire month, culminating on the last Saturday in April for Spring Rebuilding Day! With this change, we expect to be able to invite more groups to join us in the future and deepen our impact as we watch this exciting program grow!

Shoutout to KPFF Consulting Engineers for completing the FIRST project of National Rebuilding Month 2019! Over the weekend, around 45 volunteers from long-time partner, KPFF, braved the rain to help a neighbor in need. Volunteers completed a number of projects including painting, addressing a leak around the chimney, installing a front door transition so that homeowner Pam can safely transport her mother Viola in her wheelchair, removing carpet in the basement, item removal, and yardwork.

Check out media coverage of the project, and stay tuned on our Facebook page throughout the month to see what other incredible projects our sponsors and volunteers complete!

Thank you to our #RebuildingMonth sponsors!

Open Volunteer Day Recap Rebuilding Together Seattle’s first Open Volunteer Day of 2019 was a great success, attracting the greatest number of volunteers in the program’s history. More than 20 people spent their Saturday helping neighbors in need. The March 2 nd event connected volunteers with two project sites in the Rainier View neighborhood of Seattle.

One group of volunteers worked on repaired a homeowner’s backyard fence, and another group spent the day helping homeowner Inell. She first participated in April 2018’s National Rebuilding Day, and this second phase of repairs included reattaching downspouts, replacing rotten fascia boards, installing grab bars, replacing the dryer vent, performing yard work, and executing other safety and health focused home repairs.

Thanks to our seasoned volunteers and several newcomers from Green Canopy and Gaspar Construction, Rebuilding Together Seattle started 2019 off strong! If you missed the chance to participate in this Open Volunteer Day, or if want to continue making an impact on the lives of our neighbors, please join us for the next Open Volunteer Day on Saturday, June 1 st . Stay tuned for more details and registration! If you have any questions regarding our Open Volunteer Day program or other ways to get involved, please email Scott Sharba, RTS Program Manager, at [email protected] .

You're invited to our 6th Annual Safe & Healthy Homes Breakfast!

Join us at our new event location - the  Sky View Observatory  at Columbia Center! Ascend to the city's highest peak - no hiking boots required. At nearly 1,000 feet, the observatory offers the tallest public viewing area in the Pacific Northwest. The 360 degree panoramic view includes Mt. Rainier, Bellevue, the Cascade Mountains, Mt. Baker, Elliott Bay, the Olympic Mountains, the Space Needle, and the city of Seattle. Enjoy a delicious breakfast from 73 stories above the city, listen to a powerful story from a homeowner who has been impacted by the work we do, and help us work toward our vision of safe homes and communities for everyone! ** Admission to the event is free, however, a $150 minimum donation is suggested to support the Safe at Home Program.

Register Today!

Thank you to our event sponsors!

GiveBIG - Seattle's biggest day of giving - is back for its 8th year! Join Rebuilding Together Seattle and more than 1,400 Seattle area nonprofits on Wednesday, May 8th for a day full of giving and philanthropy! Here’s how you can make an impact: 1. Mark May 8th on your calendar and save this link to give your donation. You can also pre-schedule your donation for GiveBIG when you create an account here . Any level of donation will help us as we work toward our vision of safe homes and communities for everyone! 2. Follow RTS on Facebook and share our GiveBIG posts to help us build momentum. 3. Spread the word! Tell your friends and family why you support Rebuilding Together Seattle through #GiveBIG. Forward this email to your family and friends along with a personal note as to why you believe in this cause, and why they should also give on May 8th. Together, we can enact real, tangible change by donating to Rebuilding Together Seattle. We can’t wait to celebrate with you the difference we will make when we #GiveBIG May 8! Thank you for your support!

Grab your friends, grab a burger, and GIVE BACK!

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