Volunteers with a local nonprofit agency fix broken swamp coolers on 110-degree days.
They install adaptive and safety modifications in bathrooms for disabled Tucsonans.
They repair roofs and floors in mobile homes.
They replace gas lines for elderly couples.
And they do it all at no cost to the homeowner.
Community Home Repair Projects of Arizona Inc. provides emergency home repair assistance to low-income homeowners in Pima County.
"It's a good program for the community," Executive Director Scott Coverdale said. "It's fun to work here in the sense that we get to meet people all the time and get to do something that has an immediate impact on somebody's life."
Community Home Repair was formed in 1982 under a different name and established itself as a nonprofit agency in 1991.
People are also reading…
The agency's mission over the last 30 years has always been to help low-income homeowners with home repairs.
Clients must meet low-income guidelines to be eligible for free assistance. They also must own their home - rental property is not eligible.
The agency also doesn't assist with remodeling projects or additions, and it doesn't paint or replace floors.
But Community Home Repair does fan out all across the county four days a week to take on all sorts of jobs - big and small.
"We don't build new houses, but we try to give somebody else a better habitat," volunteer Harvey Hartzler said. "We try to make it better wherever we can."
Coverdale schedules jobs one day in advance to prioritize the most critical repairs.
Four two-person crews assembled June 30 to complete about 10 jobs.
Most of the work orders were to repair evaporative coolers.
One recent job handled by volunteers Howard Polster and Luke Rembold required the pair to unclog a cooler's spider pipe, which hangs from the top of the swamp cooler. They had the unit producing cold air again in less than 30 minutes.
Polster, who worked in human resources before he retired, volunteers Tuesdays and Thursdays at Community Home Repair.
He calls Thursdays "school days" because that's the day volunteers receive some type of technical training.
Polster doesn't think of fixing swamp coolers on sweltering summer days as work.
"Normally, work is work, but this is fun," he said.
Volunteers always are needed at Community Home Repair.
People come from across the country to pitch in at the agency.
Typically a full-time volunteer position at the local nonprofit is arranged through a church organization, which provides living expenses to the volunteer.
Amy Showalter, a Virginia native, arrived in Tucson about two years ago and volunteers full time with Community Home Repair.
"I've worked for a lot of nonprofits, and this one does good work," she said. "It's a good use of the money that comes in."
Funds from public and private donors support the agency.
"We do everything we can with what we have," Coverdale said.
More than 1,000 projects were completed in 2010 by Community Home Repair.
"It's a small agency, but we do a lot of work," Coverdale said.
how to help
Go to www.chrpaz.org or call 745-2055 to volunteer or donate to Community Home Repair Projects of Arizona Inc.
Contact reporter Andrea Rivera at arivera@azstarnet.com or 807-8430.
