Residents paint, trim trees and build a house during Day of Caring

By CARA SPAZIANI / Journal Staff Writer

Alex Kemnitzer of Shepherdstown volunteers his time to paint the town’s visitor center Tuesday afternoon. (Journal photo by Martin B. Cherry)

MARTINSBURG — Tammy Cogle watched in amazement as contractors hammered nails into wooden beams and laid pipe for plumbing.

The spectacle forming in front of her eyes on Arch Street in Martinsburg was a sight close to Cogle’s heart — it’s her home.

“It doesn’t even seem real,” Cogle said. “I just keep wanting to pinch myself.”

The 1,200-square-foot home is being built as part of the United Way of the Eastern Panhandle’s Day of Caring, an event that Trina Bartlett, the United Way’s director of community impact, said brought nearly 1,300 volunteers to complete more than 40 projects throughout Berkeley, Jefferson and Morgan counties.

“It really allows agencies across the Eastern Panhandle to be showcased and to get support for those agencies,” Bartlett said.

Cogle’s house is being built by volunteers from Habitat for Humanity of the Eastern Panhandle and by members of the Eastern Panhandle Home Builders Association in a one-week “blitz build.”

Workers from both organizations started constructing the house around noon on Monday. As of noon Tuesday, the house was already a third of the way complete, said Habitat for Humanity’s project director, Brian Hensell.

As many as 50 volunteers worked on the three-bedroom, one-bathroom house, building walls and installing electric on Tuesday.

“By Friday, the house will be ready to move into, turnkey,” said David Hartley, EPHBA’s executive officer.

Cogle’s home will come complete with landscaping and all new appliances.

“It’s incredible,” Cogle said. “If Habitat wouldn’t have helped, we would be stuck.”

Habitat for Humanity’s “blitz build” wasn’t the only good deed being done in Berkeley County.

The Shenandoah Women’s Center painted its walls baby blue with the help of City Hospital employees. The Center also cemented cracks in its sidewalk and cleaned its office.

“Organizations like this, we don’t have money to do things like this because money has been cut out,” said Teresa Shumate, who was working to cement the center’s sidewalk.

Donna Davis, who works in environmental services at City Hospital, helped apply a fresh coat of paint to one of the center’s rooms.

This is Davis’ third year volunteering during the Day of Caring. She continues to do so because she likes to help people, she said.

It wasn’t just adults that volunteered their time Tuesday. Students from leadership classes at Martinsburg and Musselman high schools took the day off from classes to lend a helping hand.

Musselman High School students stood outside Wal-Mart’s doors Tuesday asking if the store’s patrons would purchase shampoo and conditioners, soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste and sunblock for community and military kits that were being prepared by the Berkeley County chapter of the American Red Cross.

“Our troops need things and people don’t realize this,” said Stephanie Begeman, 17. “This has been good because I can give back to the community.”

Jessica Allen, 16, a student at Musselman High School, volunteered with a Martinsburg-Berkeley County Parks and Recreation effort at War Memorial Park.

With broom in hand, Allen worked to push mulch off a sidewalk and back into a planted area at the park.

“A lot of young people need to get more involved,” Allen said. “It gets us out of school, too.”

Centra Bank employees also worked on preparing the park’s bathhouse as a preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds.

This has been Centra Bank’s fifth year volunteering with the parks agency.

“It’s great that businesses allow employees to take off work to come out and volunteer,” said the bank’s vice president, Cheryl Kemmerer.

Other projects in Berkeley County included painting at the Bethany House by Journal employees, preparing and delivering meals with Meals on Wheels of Berkeley County and painting at Legal Aid.

“People always think about themselves and how to better themselves,” said Mike Peters, who volunteered his time to trim trees at War Memorial Park. “This is more about the community.”



— Staff writer Cara Spaziani can be reached at 263-8931, ext. 138, or cspaziani@journal-news.net

Section: News    Posted: 9/13/2006

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